Coast
path diversion - is it for ever?
One of the legacies of the severe storms and rain of the 2013/14
winter was the closure on safety grounds of a stretch of the south
west coastal path between Talland Bay and Polperro which was in danger
of collapse. Fortunately there is a good diversion which has good
views but it misses out the west side of Talland Bay (the diversion
goes up Sand Hill and you can either rejoin the original route west
of Down End or you can just carry on down Talland Hill into Polperro).
Because of the damage to the original route It's looking unlikely
that the original route will be restored by the Cornwall Council.
www.talland.org - news - 5 May 2015 |
The bell comes home - after nearly a century
 The
owners of the Old Vicarage at Talland returned home one day to find
a bell hanging on their front door knob. A label tied to the bell
simply said that the bell was to be returned to the vicarage. A call
to the telephone number on the label revealed all - Mrs Desiree
Campbell of Torpoint, who had frequently stayed in the vicarage
as a child, wanted the bell to return home on her death - the bell
had probably been removed as a keep-sake when her family moved out
of the vicarage in 1920.
The bell's return led to the discovery that Muriel Jerram, who lived
in the vicarage as a child (from 1891), had written recollections
of her time there not long before she died in 1975 - she was Desiree
Campbell's aunt. Frances Impey, Desiree's daughter, who brought the
bell back home, has kindly agreed to allow her great aunt's recollections
(which amount to 25 pages) to be published on this webite - see our
Memories page - click here.
Click on image of bell for larger version.
See also stories about a wayward
vicar and a bogus curate
Looking for Sclerder Abbey? The Abbey now has its own webpage
on the Saltash parish website - see our Links
page for more information |
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| The only road running through
the Talland Bay area is a single track lane (which leaves the A387
Looe to Polperro road about 1 mile out of Looe and rejoins it at Barcelona,
about 2 miles from Polperro). The lane is narrow with occasional passing
places - it is also very steep in places - please drive slowly and
carefully and be prepared to back up, maybe several times in summertime.
Don't rely on your sat-nav in the Talland Bay & Polperro area
- you may well end up in a steadily narrowing lane with nowhere to
turn round and which doesn't actually go where you want anyway - be
warned! (in particular Bridals Lane and Sand Hill are likely to display
wrongly as through and connecting roads - they are not!) |
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| Talland
Bay lies between Looe and Polperro in south-east Cornwall.
It has two small beaches, one of which has sand even at low tide,
and there are rocks to scramble over and rock pools for children (and
adults) to explore. The South West Coastal Path passes through Talland.
Eastwards, between Talland Bay and Hannafore, near Looe (3 miles)
the coastline is unspoilt. Similarly, westwards, between Talland Bay
and Polperro (1.5 miles) the coast path passes through unspoilt cliff/downland.
Talland itself, where the ancient church of St. Tallanus is situated,
is hardly even a hamlet but Porthallow, close to the beaches, has
more houses and a fashionable hotel. There are a number of nice self-catering
cottages in easy reach of the sea and just very slightly inland, several
caravan and camping sites, such as Tencreek. There is also a recently
built holiday village (The Bay) which has 46 upmarket holiday homes,
some of which can be rented for holidays. |
| The main attractions
are undoubtedly the beaches and coastal scenery and walking the coastal
path to Looe and Polperro as well as other local footpaths with fine
views are popular. The coastal path and footpaths such as the one
to Tencreek not only have fine views but are good places to see wildlife
- from skylarks, buzzards and butterflies, wild flowers including
orchids and mammals such as deer and foxes - and hear crickets and
see glow worms. As elsewhere on the Cornish peninsula, the weather
varies between idyllic perfection and wild and stormy - sometimes
even on the same day - so be prepared for sun, wind and rain! |
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