Twitchers head for the islands in numbers

Want to visit the Scillies for the day? walk this way.......
and catch the Scillonian III or, if you prefer, take the 20 minute flight on the helicopter......
out in the early morning sun and at anchor, the Trinity flagship, Galatea is in the process of servicing a buoy.
making a more leisurely exit is the oldest floating Cornish lugger, the Barnabus......
still showing his platinum black and white prints at the PZ Gallery......
not that you would want to walk along the harbour wall, scene of much deliberation over the proposed Scillies ferry and dock developments that include the rocks below.....
maybe one of the boats is going for some salubrious refurbishments in the accommodation areas......
coming down from on high......
while some heavy duty repairs are made to the derrick......
before the strengthened section is returned......
and the job completed........

five boxes at a time provide an early morning work out......
ideal conditions for a local paddler......
en passage, Our Maria from Brixham makes her way to the gaps......
while another hydraulic hose finds its way back in place on the hauler......
simple design purse type bait bag on a crab pot.......
well if you are stuck for a name, go for a little rhyme.......
watched by a couple of old hands, the old Sennen lifeboat......
Tesco feeds the fleet this week.

Smoking ban strikes again

There was some trouble north of the border when the smoking ban was brought in a while back - listen here.

Ice and Elisabeth

Cracking start to the morning after a previous dismal day - in this weather, why not join Jamie Oliver's Fifteen restaurant as they celebrate their MSC certification and enjoy plenty of local fish dishes, Mitch Tonks (who was seen showing England rugby star Matt Dawson a few culinary tips down the quay last summer) cooked there on Thursday......
end of the season and the yachts begin to come ashore in Penzance harbour......
bounders as the sun breaks into the Bay.......
a small stone set against the footrope, just the sort of thing that trawlers do not need to pick up in their nets, this one came ashore courtesy of the Tranquility......
just finisdhed taking ice......
the Elisabeth Veronique makes her way down the harbour........
while the Chloe T clears away after landing at the market.

Southwest sole food sold in the city

Here's great news for our local boats that target Dover soles!

Top Chelsea fishmonger Mat C, who blogs under the title of London Fishmonger, has posted an in-depth look at the price diferential for Dover soles sourced from two different sea areas. More specifically, he compares Dovers caught off the east coast to those caught down in here in the deeper waters of the south west - and it's the south west soles that get a big thumbs up in terms of quality, appearance, flavour and texture to boot! Better still, it appears that the discerning palates of London customers mean that they are prepared to pay bigger bucks for superior southern sole food!

Proposed new purpose built fish market project approved - but now a new delay

The continuing saga of Newlyn's much needed new fish market takes another turn. Despite the business case for the new market development having met with approval from the MFA (Marine & Fisheries Agency) they have postponed their decision pending a review of situation regarding the harbour's governance. With what appears to be a major source of concern, the MFA points out that, despite the considerable investment planned by the harbour, the Newlyn Harbour commissioners have not held a meeting since April of this year. A more detailed account can be found in an article from the local press here.

To add to the mix, a new Harbour Revision Order, currently awaiting sanction and implementation will see a larger board of governors drawn from local business, commercial and community interests.

Campaigning Consol Oils' captain, Kevin Bennets covers many aspects of the current debate in his forthright blog posting recently - his observation that the port of Dingle in Eire has stolen a march on Newlyn by providing a service point for the Spanish Grand Sole fleet is evidence of the substantial economic gains that a forward looking Newlyn could potentially participate in and benefit from.

My feet are cold

Marine growth on the top of a pot that has been lost and found......
maybe just discovered that his socks are missing.......
the sidewinder Excellent, artwork on W&S service van.....
fresh paint job on the Harvest Reaper........
Carol H dhans.......
expecting a long night ahead, Peter, skipper of the ring netter Resolute, takes some light reading aboard.....
just gone seven pm and the Scillonian III passes Battery Rocks......
destination for some will be the cosy Yacht Inn behind the Jubilee Pool......
the evening skies clear after a day of heavy rain.

Listen to the boys!

Grease monkey

Forklift, tubs and ice ready for the sardine boats to arrive........
Ed loads the Ocean Fish wagon........
as the all important running gear on the end of the derrick gets a good dollop of grease.

Top tomato tip

You know the score, in the recipe it calls for fresh tomatoes, skinned and de-seeded, you reach for the can of tinned toms instead why? because skinning the toms is such a pain - not any more........

with a small sharp knife, cut out the top of the toms as above and drop them into a saucepan of boiling water that just covers them.....
whip them out after about 60 secs and, with the knife pushed down through the top of the tom to hold it still on the chopping board, you will find the peel comes away easy as pie - next step, use your hand to squeeze the tom with just enough force the seeds to squish out - voila!

Trawler gets giant Skysails

Wonder which will be the first in the local fleet to have one of these fitted?

Mackerel fisherman, Stuart McClary in St Ives on Countryfile.

While it's still showing on BBC iPlayer, catch top mackerel handline fisherman Stuart McClary as he conjours this summers most elusive of fish from the waters off St Ives. Use the link and then, if you want to ignore the rest of the programme, head in 14 minutes and 30 seconds to catch the start of the spot on line caught mackerel - fish merchant Matthew Stevens introduces before the crew head out to sea on the ever popular Provider.

Back ashore, presenter Jan gets converted to eating superfresh mackerel on a BBQ in front of the everpopular Porthminster Beach Cafe. For the dedicated - here's the recipe from the Countryfile website. Top tip for gastronauts - banana leaves can be found in many florists these days!

Milford Mike's misty Monday mackerel mystery

Plenty of green on the market this morning as the beamers come back from the deep water loaded with megs (megrim soles)......
the greater forkbeard, better known locally as plus-fours......
the CKS landed a mixed bag of net fish including these porbeagle and blue sharks.....
and, surprisingly, a dozen boxes of mackerel, much to the chagrin of the inshore punts for whom mackerel are something of a rarity of late.......
a good run of hake finished off the CKS's trip......
in the gloom the boys aboard the Sea-Spray enjoy a post landing cuppa in the comfort of the wheelhouse.......
in the week that saw the Conservative Party at their annual conference propose that the retirement age be extended one man has exceeded their target already!, the difficult to catch and oldest but fastest man on the market.......
in the frame, the Border Agency's patrol boat Searcher lays against the Stone Quay.....
one beam trawl, gift-wrapped and ready to go back aboard.

A circular walk at Land's End via Trevilley Farm and Nanjizal beach.

Enjoy a short walk of 3.7 miles from Trevescan to Land's End via Nanjizal ......

after leaving the car and passing Treevilley farm complex to the right cross the fields along a clearly marked footpath......
there are plenty of ancient stone hedges in evidence, thought to be amongst the oldest field enclosures in the world from the earliest human settlements in the area......
shortly after joing the cliff path heading north the mouth to a small cave is seen, complete with a large tin ore seam.....
the rae is littered with sea caves.......
looking back south towards the Runnelstone with a handful of punts working the bass to the west of the reef......
soem of the locals are very inquisitive.......
this house overlooking Nanjizal beach must enjoy spectacular views during the winter storms......
one of many passing container ships between Land's End and the Scillies......
which can clearly be seen in the distance.......
easlily seen from the cliff path, a peregrine falcon sweeps over the water below.....
now looking north towards the Longhsips as the path makes for Land's End.....
where there is a chance to be fed and watered while enjpying the sun going down if you time it right.