Mike and Clare: Round the Bottom of England...

13 July, 2023

Round the Bottom of England...

We embarked on an expedition on Lindblad's National Geographic Explorer from Tilbury Docks down the Thames in London. This vessel is one of Lindblad's four (our estimate) 'round the world' ships and must be one of the oldest. Part of the expedition team on board was Jim and Anne who were the parents of the expedition leader, Peter, on the NatGeo Resolution. The Lindblad world is a small one! The usual cruise ship procedures applied - using our key card, we have to swipe off whenever we leave the ship, then on again on return. A double check when Zodiacs are involved is to see if there are any life jackets left over. Passengers who fail to swipe back on are publically named and shamed by having their cabin numbers called out over the ship's PA system.

Portsmouth

The Explorer started by making its way around the south of England where we called in at places we have never been despite previous trips here, so these stops were new to us and very interesting. The first was at Portsmouth, a major port and naval base (with the world's oldest dry dock) which played a pivotal role in military affairs for centuries, and is still Britain's main naval base. In its historical dockyards are several important ships, probably most notable being the 18C HMS Victory, Lord Nelson's flagship in the Battle of Trafalgar (1805), and Henry VII's Mary Rose, since recovered after capsizing in battle against the French in 1545, before his very eyes, apparently, as he watched the battle from the shore. Lord Nelson was killed by a French sniper because, despite advice, he insisted on being on deck for the battle in his full dress uniform, so easily identified from afar. In Portsmouth we enjoyed fine but threatening weather - forecast showers did not eventuate.

The symbol of Portsmouth, the spinnaker tower by the harbour. [7784]

Aircraft carrier at Portsmouth's active navy base. [7791]

A mute swan at the tiny harbour of Hill Head, near Portsmouth. [7822]

The Flying Scotsman luckily captured during a ceremonial journey around the south of England. [7881]

Flint, common around Portsmouth, is the construction material for this house and many others in the district. [7899]

We bussed to Titchfield Haven>, an out-of-town nature reserve next to the sea at Hill Head Sailing Club. Titchfield occupies 145ha of the Meon River valley, and the natural enviroment has been boosted with scrapes, artificial lakes and several bird hides. This was a stunning place, with beautiful meadows and copious (and close) bird life, enabling some great photos.

Black-headed gull making off with some nesting materials. [7853]

Avocet reflecting in the waters of Titchfield. [7868]

Foxglove. [7805]

A Georgian mansion Southwick House, near Portsmouth, was the command centre for the naval operations on D-Day, Operation Overlord. There in the very 'Map Room' of the operation, we heard a detailed explanation of the strategies and preparations for the massive Allied landings on the beaches of Normandy. We visited the stuffy old bar, still in use by resident navy officers (but didn't get a drink), that Admiral Ramsey, General Eisenhower and Prime Minister Chuchill used to frequent. The eloquent speaker brought the whole operation to life with great detail and humerous anecdotes. We loved the story of Stag, a dour but brilliant Scottish meteorologist whose weather predictions were pivotal.

Southwick House where D-Day's naval operations were conceived and planned. [7900]

The modestly sized 'mao room', in the Command Centre for the D-Day invasion. [7904]

Just plain huge, one of ~700 landing craft used in the D-Day invasion of France. [7926]

Memorial at the D-Day Story museum in Portsmouth. [7927]

Undercover outside the D-Day Story museum, the interior of restored landing craft LCT7074, one of hundreds which transported troops to France on that day.. We were not prepared for how big these craft were! [7929]

Kept under dim light for presevation, this giant tapestry of about 40 separate panels, based on contemporary cartoons, tells the story of D-Day. [7934]

The fort from which Henry Viii watched the Mary Rose go down in battle with the French. [7939]

A brass band played 'Anchors Aweigh' as the NatGeo Explorer departed Portsmouth. [7946]

Sunset, sailing out of Portsmouth. [0266]

Fowey, Cornwall

On another fine day, as in many of the tiny harbours the NatGeo Explorer entered, a pilot boarded to guide the ship to a safe mooring in the indescribably beautiful port of Fowey, pronounced 'Foy', rhymes with 'joy'. A tug assisted positioning. The port still did not have a dock big enough to accommodate us, so it was a Zodiac ride to get to dry land. Buses could not pick us up in the narrow twisty streets of town, so we offloaded at Caffa Mill where china clay shipments are loaded.

Fort and tiny village at the entry to Fowey Harbour. [7952]

Grand house on the harbour in Fowey. [7954]

It looks like everyone in Fowey has a boat. [7962]

The Fowey Gallants Sailing Club. [7966]

It was a half hour bus ride to the Lost Gardens of Heligan, Heligan means 'willow tree' in Cornish, near the town of Megavissey, a Cornish beauty we are sure we visited on a driving trip many years ago. The brochure touts Heligan as Europe's largest garden restoration project, having been 'lost and then found'. The estate has been in the Tremayne family for 400 years, but the abandoned and overgrown gardens, the owner being so distressed by the deaths of many staff members in WW1, were rediscovered in 1990, and the present restoration is a tribute to these previous workers.

The gardens run down a steep valley into a 'jungle' complete with a Burmese type rope bridge, and they feature farm gardens, wild areas and cultivated floral sculptures. The whole site deserved much more time than the hour or so we spent in it. Getting back to Fowey early did, however, allow us time to enjoy the town itself.

Lush foliage in Heligan's jungle at the base of the valley. [7975]

Mud Maid, a sculpture by Sue & Pete Hill in Heligan, is framed in timber and netting and clothed in ivy. [7977]

Unidentified but pretty weed (?) in Heligan. [7980]

Fowey is a classic Cornwall coastal town, as pretty as a picture as they all are. Across its harbour is Polruan, with ferries plying between the two and to Megavissey. Upstream of where the Resolution was moored is a large industrial complex, Caffa Mill, where china clay from inis shipped. It is very hilly on both sides of the harbour. Maybe because it was Sunday, the village was busy with visitors who crowded the shops and pubs near the water. Up the hill a bit, it was less so with mostly locals enjoying the fine weather and sunshine in relative peace and quiet. With a natural harbour (which also appealed to pirates), Fowey was an established town well before the Normal invasion of 1066AD, and it has an impressive church, Saint Finbarr's, whose origins date back to the 7th Century AD but the buildings itself have been destroyed and rebuilt several times. The church seems to be somehow linked to an adjacent castle, Place House. There were not many cars in the town's desperately narrow streets. There's little parking anyway, but three or more out of town carparks serve visitors and maybe residents.

The Lugger, a popular pub in one of Fowey's narrow, cobbled lanes. [7991]

The NatGeo Explorer moored cosily in Fowey harbour. [7992]

Unidentified black bird with grey behind his head at the harbour in Fowey. [7993]

It was a Sunday, and we think most of the people in Fowey were visitors. The pubs and cafes and shops were busy, and the just out-of-toen carparks were full. [7994]

This mum and toddler can only play on this tiny beach beside the Whitehouse Quay ferry wharf at low tide. [8003]

Ferries take passengers to nearby Megavissey and across the harbour to Polruan. [8006]

The imposing Harbour Hotel commands great vies of Fowey harbour and the opposite town of Polruan. [8007]

The castle and adjoining church in Fowey have histories dating back 1000 years. [8022]

Pretty flower pot with a sailing motif on a house in Fowey. [8028]

Once Daphne Dumaurier's house Ferryside at Bodinnik fronting Fowey harbour. [8030]

Pilot pulling up to the side of NatGeo Explorer to guide us out of the Fowey Harbour. [8040]

Iles of Scilly

Over 20km out from Lands End in Cornwall lie the Iles of Scilly which were to be our last stop in England. These islands are both the southern and western extremes of England. We arrived here on yet another beautiful warm day, sunny and no wind. We are sure having good luck with the weather! Our landing was on the second largest Scilly, Tresco (was St Nicholas from 1193AD, but then renamed in 1305AD meaning 'farm of elder trees') by Zodiac at the southern point New Quay. There are two settlement areas on Tresco, New Grimsby and Old Grimsby and we walked the couple of kilometers to these delightful little towns and looked at the quay area where ferries arrive. Time and energy did not allow us a longer walk to the ruins of King Charles' Castle and Cromwell's Castle. Back near our landing point was the Tresco Abbey which is private but its massive gardens are open to the public. To get to and from New Quay we had to cross a helicopter landing area which had boom gates to keep us back during operations. There was lots of traffic here, so arriving by air must be popular. As we walked, a huge old Hercules cargo plane lumbered by just over our heads as it landed on the next island, St Marys apparently on its retirement tour of the country.