Feock
Pill Creek
The Book Exchange
Loe Beach
Photographs
More in Towns & Villages
Feock on the broad River Fal
When I started this entry I couldn't claim to have explored Feock properly, having just stopped off briefly on my way to Trelissick for a Fal Creek walk. However, I returned in late September 2016 for a more thorough exploration. The village proper is inland; to its south is Loe Beach with seasonal parking, a slipway and a seasonal beach caf�. To the west, with a small car park above, is Pill Point, about the only public access to the expensive looking Pill Creek. Above Feock church, said to have been founded by St. Feoca, are its detached bell tower, some attractive white painted cottages and a book exchange in the old phone box. Beyond the church is the Old Vicarage, now a private home. There are upper and lower lych gates - the lower has a room above it - a massive yew by the east end and a fine Cornish Cross by the porch. Inside the church are hatchments of local notable families, a 12th century font of blue Cataclews stone, a wall banner of a 1576 map of Cornwall, a low marble (or alabaster) chancel screen, a carved wooden pulpit, a colourful chancel ceiling and an elaborat reredos. A charming village (there is actually much more of it, very expensive looking) with an equally charming church and churchyard, well worth a visit. Leaving Feock, I took a wrong turn looking for Kea and spotted an old toll house just off the Playing Place roundabouts.
Flushing
Originally called Nankersey, the village acquired its present name when Dutch engineers were employed to build the village’s quays. They were from Vlissingen, known to the British as Flushing. Oddly there is another Flushing on Gillan Creek south of Falmouth; no connection is known. This Flushing is an attractive village with some big houses on St. Peter’s Hill and Trefusis Street, many once the homes of Falmouth ship’s captains, now probably homes of commuters to Falmouth or Truro. One such, Rockside on Trefusis Street, looks like a handsome Georgian house but, according to Pevsner, it is a converted warehouse. Flushing is very much a small boat sailing village and an important annual regatta week is held in summer, complete with swimming and bath-tub racing as well as sailing. According to Wikipedia Henry VIII had planned to build a castle on Trefusis Point to complement those at St. Mawes and Pendennis in guarding Falmouth but never did. Flushing is no longer the fishing village it once was but there are still a few commercial boats. And, sadly, many of the houses are now, like so many in Cornwall’s more attractive villages, used as second homes. Happily there are still two pubs, the Royal Standard and the Seven Stars, and there is a nicely located restaurant on The Quay, the Waterside with tables outside. The Trefusis Estate, in which you walk much of the way to Mylor Churchtown, is part of Devon-based Clinton Estates; the Trefusis family holds the title Baron Clinton. St. Peter's Church
Fowey
An attractive small town with very narrow streets and a one-way system. However, its quaint and scenic attractions are less easy to enjoy than those of St. Ives and St. Mawes, comparably pretty waterside towns. While they both cluster around a harbour and have walkable waterfronts, Fowey has no harbour as such but depends on its deep tidal river. And while St. Ives and St. Mawes face the water, Fowey's buildings back on to the river and almost nowhere can you walk by the water. There are attractive shops in Fore, North and Lostwithiel Streets and pretty alleyways climb the steep hill. Of the several pubs, the King of Prussia is best known and there are now some boutique hotels. The town has a long maritime history. In medieval times it provided ships for the Crusades and for the wars with the French. Henry VIII considered it of sufficient importance to fortify it with a pair of castles and a chain across the River Fowey. Now there are yachts, fishing boats and a china clay terminal up-river and, thanks to the deep water of the Fowey River, cruise ships visit occasionally. A major regatta takes place in August. Don't expect to park in the centre, instead follow car park signs on the periphery and be prepared to walk. A round walk - Lantic Bay and Polruan