Mousehole - "Boats Down"

Whenever we visit Cornwall the day pretty much always starts by mum asking, "right, where are we going today then?" and it's rare for me not to have an answer. There is always something I've spotted, or some place that I've had recommended that I want to see and this time it was Mousehole. It was only 20 minutes away from where we were staying and I'd remember seeing lovely pictures of this pretty harbour spot so off we went. We made our way down the A30 towards Penzance, seeing the magnificent St Michael's Mount looking glorious on this sunny spring day. On to Newlyn and then a few hairy-raisingly narrow roads and steep hills later and we found ourselves parked up on the outskirts of Mousehole.

So here is where my complete ignorance to the ways of Cornish fishing life are made obvious. There was excited little me wandering down towards the harbour, camera in hand, ready to see the boats, beckoning "Good Morning" to everyone I passed because well, it was spring, and sunny and Saturday and all felt right with the world. Round a corner and the harbour presents itself in front of us looking oh so glorious and oh so empty! Hmm…. where were all the boats? The tide was out but that wouldn't mean they'd all be gone. As we pottled round the little streets passing a few quaint looking eateries and shops we kept seeing signs saying "Boats down Sat 21st Mar". So, it turns out that during the winter months, the boats are taken out of the water and then when spring arrives they are all lifted back in again and by chance today was the day that was happening. An important lesson learned here - do research!

But the morning was so beautiful that this didn't dampen our spirits for long, time for a cuppa. "2 Fore Street Restaurant" looked bright and inviting with a promise of a garden on the sign outside and it didn't disappoint. Inside was white, bright and airy, my favourite kind of place. The offering of morning cake goodies. One raspberry tea and date slice for me and almond cake and cappuccino for mum ordered and off out the back in search of a sunny spot we went. The little courtyard garden was basking in sunshine, in fact, I got so hot that taking off my parka coat wasn't enough, I had to move to the other side of the table in the shade. We chatted with the waiter about Boats Down and he explained all about it telling us that Easter weekend was a big hoorah and that's when the boats went out for the first time. I felt a sad little pang inside that I wouldn't be around to see that because I was betting it made for a fantastic atmosphere. It was interesting to hear how he pronounced "Mousehole" as well, more like "maws-all" without the "h". It got me thinking about how we tourists must pronounce so many names wrong like "Fowey" which is said more like "joy" with an "f".

Back through the town we wandered, enjoying looking at the homemade wares displaying in the shop windows. We sat for a little while on the harbour wall soaking up some very much needed sunlight. It was great to hear the locals stop and chat to each other as they went about their day. Children were playing on the sand, screeching as loud as they could just because of the sheer delight of having so much space to run free. Everything just felt so relaxed, at ease and wonderful. Fishermen were out tidying up their boats ready for the put down, the guy with his boat on the far end moaning that he would be last. Apparently a crane would be coming.

So the trip wasn't quite what I'd expected, but that's ok, it just means that I'll have to go back! I am really glad that we got to see it right at the beginning of the season before all the hustle and bustle set in. Somehow it felt like we got a glimpse of what life is really like there.