Merrymeet and St. Ive
St. Ive
Before visiting Callington in October 2016 I first took a look at the little villages of Merrymeet (what an odd name, probably Saxon meaning a pleasant meeting place, according to Craig Weatherhill) and St. Ive Churchtown (not to be confused with St. Ives). Neither is of any consequence. Merrymeet has a small modern church, a mission church under Menheniot parish. There is an unusual small organ and a small altar on granite columns. St. Ive Churchtown (there are also St. Ive Cross, St. Ive Keason and St. Ive Parkfield) has a pleasant church with carved roof bosses in nave and aisle roofs, an attractive altar and reredos in the south chapel, and a carved as well as painted Royal Coat of Arms.
The unusual altar in Merrymeet church
St. Ive Church and Cornelly House
Photographs
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Merther Uny
According to one authority Merther translates as the burial place (perhaps of a martyr). In this case, referring to the tiny settlement in the middle of nowhere near Helston and Gweek, it probably refers to a chapel of St. Uny which once stood here. Uny, or Euny, appears elsewhere in Cornwall. The Georgian church in Redruth Churchtown is dedicated to St. Euny, as is a well and iron age settlement, Carn Euny, to the east of Chapel Carn Brea. The church in Lelant, near St. Ives, is dedicated to St. Uny. Merther Uny is an isolated place, reached by what OS103 shows as a bridleway though it is actually a perfectly good track. It consists of Merther Uny Farm, substantial and attractive Merther Uny House, which apparently incorporates part of the former chapel, and a couple of cottages. The old Chapel is long gone but, where it stood is now woodland with a probably extremely ancient four-hole Cornish Cross, possibly in fact originally a pre-Christian inscribed stone. Another, simpler, Cornish Cross stands about 200 yards south of this, on a lane running east-west. Confusingly, there is another Merther, this one with the disused and neglected church of St. Cohan, on the east side of the Tresillian River.
Mevagissey and Port Mellon
From the photo on the left you would think Mevva (as the Cornish call it) entirely a delightful place: busy harbour, old cottages clustered around it, large newer homes above. I used to think so and I used to drive American visitors down Cliff Hill, along the harbour, and up Tregony Hill on our way to Heligan Garden. I had never really lingered there before so I got something of a shock when I parked by the harbour in February 2005 and took a walk around. I concluded that Meva is a bit of an odd mixture, rather spoiled by its own success. Once a charming small fishing village, in the 20th century it has been over-run by modern development and the worst of cheap tourism. The harbour is still a delight - if you don't look at the cheap cafes and shops - and it is still Cornwall's third busiest fishing port. But it is definitely not a place to spend much time in. However, if you follow the narrow street southwards and climb Polkirt Hill, (great overview of harbour and coast, looking back from here) you come to Port Mellon. Here is a quiet cove with a boatyard, a decent pub and second homes clustered around. Continue and walk left up a lane and you come to photogenic Chapel Point, its whitewashed buildings looking rather like a small Mediterranean monastery. Continue along the coast path and you will soon find yourself in Gorran Haven.
Mevagissey Clare
I moved to Mevagissey in 2012 and during that time have been favourably impressed with how the village has improved. Your 2005 review no longer reflects how the village is, so I thought to offer an update. Shops and cafes are now of much higher quality: Tea on the Quay, The Teapot and She Sells all offer top quality food and home-made cakes. Gift shops no longer sell tourist tat, but are largely craft based and tasteful including the Roberts Cooperative of Craftspeople. There is a high quality deli too. There are some fine restaurants with good reputations: The Salamander is very high quality. The experienced couple who took over The Sharksfin on the harbour 5 years ago serve interesting fresh food all day, excellent staff and service, tasteful arty seaside decor. They have also opened The Longstore (yes, Jane and I liked it) in neighbouring Charlestown. The Alvarado, run by Antonio from Portugal, using the catch from his own fishing boat is right on the harbour and is authentic and excellent. There are now 13 restaurants and 6 pubs in Mevagissey plus several tea shops and cafes. The chef-run Fisherman’s Chippy is is excellent: griddled fish (garlic scallops for example) as well as the usual deep fried fish. Mevva has a lower percentage of 2nd home ownership than most Cornish coastal towns. As an active fishing port there is a thriving community of young families and even in winter it is a nice place to visit because it isn’t “dead” thanks to the high proportion of permanent residents. In the summer it is busy: people come for boat trips on the fishing fleet or on the beautiful, recently refurbished Seas the Day but, unlike Padstow or St Ives, the village doesn't get overcrowded. Many people visit Mevagissey because it's near The Lost Gardens of Heligan, walking distance up an attractive valley. The TIC is in Hurley’s Bookshop; Liz Hurley is very well informed as author of several walking guides and local history books. The volunteer-run Mevagissey Museum celebrates 50 years in 2018 and now has official museum accreditation. Mevagissey Feast Week in June and the Christmas Lights and New Year celebrations are all run by volunteers with voluntary contributions and are very successful. Visitors enjoy Mevva for its authenticity as a working fishing harbour, for being less touristy and over-gentrified than some of the other seaside fishing villages, for its wide choice of good restaurants, cafes and pubs and for its good quality accommodation including super B&Bs.