Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
OFF THE BEATEN TRACK
WILD FOOD FORAGING
Longing for the good life? Then how about a weekend delving through the undergrowth in search of wild berries,
edible roots and the wild herb samphire in the company of
Fat Hen
( 01736-810156;
www.fathen.org
;
Boscawen-noon Farm, St Buryan). Head forager-ecologist Caroline Davey leads guided trips in search of wild
goodies, before retiring to headquarters to see the raw materials transformed into something tasty by the Fat Hen
chefs. There are day courses, or you can opt for a wild food weekend (£165), which includes three slap-up meals
in the Goat Barn. Hedgerow cocktails, anyone?
Lamorna Cove
About halfway along the B3315 between Penzance and Porthcurno is the weeny cove of
Lamorna, a pocket of rocks, cliffs and pebbly sand which was a popular subject for many
of the key artists of the Newlyn School. It is particularly associated with the artist S. J.
'Lamorna' Birch who lived on the cove, and his close associates Alfred Munnings and
Laura and Harold Knight (whose story was recently dramatised in the film
Summer in
February
).
Just inland from the cove is
Trewoofe House
( 01736-810269; adult/child £3/free; 2-5pm Wed &
Sun)
, with a 4-acre valley garden sprinkled with streams, ponds, cascades and bluebell
woodlands.
Lamorna's also home to a fantastically luxurious complex of self-catering apartments,
aptly dubbed
The Cove
( 01736-731411;
www.thecovecornwall.co.uk
;
Lamorna Cove; £115-375 per night,
£1470-2625 per week; )
. They're straight out of a glossy lifestyle mag: stripped wood,
plasma TVs, minimalist bathrooms and picture-window patios opening onto a super
swimming pool and sweeping coastal views.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Penzance
POP 21,168
Gulls wheel overhead, fishing trawlers ply the coast and there's a scent of brine on the
breeze around the old harbour town of Penzance. Stretching along the western edge of
Mount's Bay, Penzance has marked the end of the line for the Great Western Railway
since the 1860s, and the town still feels one step removed from the rest of Cornwall. It's
faded in spots, but unlike many of its sister towns along the coast, Penzance has resisted
