Mullion
I looked around Mullion in February 2017 after re-vositing Gunwalloe Church Cove. I must admit that my look-around was not very thorough; esentially I just looked in the church then had a coffee in the friendly Old Inn opposite (there is a donation car park handy for both). Mullion has a population of around 2000, village proportions, but with Anglican, Methodist and Catholic churches, a secondary school, a fair range of shops including baker, grocer, newsagent, pharmacy, delicatessen, post office, off licence and clothes, plus pub, caf�s, rsstaurants and tea rooms, it has most of what you expect of a town. The largely 15th century church is noteworthy for its 40 early carved bench ends and for its screen which stretches across nave and two aisles. As you enter the porch, note the St. Christopher statue over the door and the dog gate in the door. But what is best known, and mosty visited, about Mullion is not the village but the harbour, a mile away at Mullion Cove. The National Trust owns the little harbour at Mullion Cove. For a National Trust location some of the buildings are a little tatty and you need to catch it on a sunny day, preferably without too many visitors, really to enjoy it. The future of the harbour is a little uncertain. It tends to suffer storm damage and the Trust's policy is one of "managed retreat".
From Helston use A3083 Lizard. At Cross Lanes, R to Mullion.
The Old Inn, Mullion
More in Towns & Villages
Mylor Churchtown and Yacht Harbour
To many this is just Mylor Yacht Harbour, a major yachting and watersports centre where Mylor Creek joins Carrick Roads. With yacht club, large marina, extensive moorings, renowned boatyard and bars and restaurants, that’s understandable. As a result of the Harbour’s success property prices are among Cornwall’s highest and large houses spread along Mylor Creek. However, for others, this is Mylor Churchtown – to distinguish it from Mylor Bridge – and the main interest is the church of St. Mylor, quite unnoticed by much of the boating fraternity. One of Cornwall’s oldest holy sites, the first church is said to have been founded before AD411 when St. Mylor was martyred here. A charming church, set in a steeply sloping churchyard, there are two Norman doorways but the body of the church is essentially of 13th and 15th centuries. There are remains of a 15th century painted rood screen, an Elizabethan pulpit and a puzzling priest’s chair, reputed to have come from nearby Glasney College, closed when Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries, of 1000 year old Irish bog oak with Norse carving and Tudor panelling. The churchyard, lych gate at the top, small iron gate on the quay, is most enjoyable, Steeply sloping, it contains a free standing bell tower, St. Mylor’s holy well, a Cornish Cross that, if the whole shaft were visible, would stand 17’ 6” high, fine wild flowers, and ancient tombstones, one commemorating the 200 who died when Queen was wrecked on Trefusis Point.
Newlyn
Adjacent Penzance is the biggest resort on the south coast of Cornwall, but Newlyn is said to have the third largest fishing fleet in Britain. First impressions are of a gritty working town but there are some quite attractive cottages in streets running up the hill. Focus, of course, is the harbour from which about a hundred boats operate. The fish auction starts at 8 a.m. each day and sells around 10,000 tons of fish a year. Pilchards were once the mainstay but the old Pilchard Works is now apartments. There is a modern art gallery at the east end of town. Oddly, if you want to see Newlyn School artists, you will have to go to Penlee House gallery in Penzance. Just south along the coast is Mousehole.
Newquay
An odd mixture of tawdry down-market resort and delightful cliffs, headlands and beaches, this is a place best seen on foot along the waterfront. Two hundred years ago just a mining and fishing village, the railroad then brought wealthy visitors and grand hotels. Lapsing to down-market in the 20th century, Newquay's discovery as a surfers paradise (Fistral is the major surfing beach) has seen much improvement. A Huer's Hut was once the look-out tower for pilchard shoals. The eight-man pilot gig is now raced; once the gigs competed to get their pilot to incoming boats first. One aspect of Newquay of which I have no experience is its nightlife. I am happy for it to stay that way. I am told that the many clubs and nightclubs seethe with action at night, much of it drunken and troublesome.