St Mawes Castle

Thursday 3^rd May 2011

Cloudy & cool but no rain. Maximum temperature 15°

Continental breakfasts this morning, as we need to try to be a bit healthy.

We decided on a shorter trip today so first stop was St Mawes to see the castle which was built by Henry VIII. It is located directly opposite Pendennis Castle across Carrick Roads, (Falmouth Harbour) and was constructed as part of the coastal defence system. Both castles continued to be used by coastal defence batteries right up until the end of WWII.

St Just in Roseland

Second stop was St Just in Roseland Church- a 13^th century church in a wonderful setting on a tidal lake. Unfortunately it was low tide so no reflection type photos were possible.

Last stop for the day was Charlestown again for a last look at the tall ships and a cuppa.

The harbour was closed, as there was some movie-filming happening. We saw a lot of actors walking up and down the dock area and on the ships all dressed on period costume with the backdrop of the Georgian village.

Back to Mevagissey for dinner, fresh bream fillets –Yum!!!!!

Launceston Castle

Friday 4^th May 2012

Overcast again today but no rain, which was a plus. Temperature approx. 14°.

After a wonderful stay at Tanglewod B&B in Mevagissey we said goodbye to our lovely host Virginia, (her husband is in France playing golf), and Cornwall and headed north to Swindon.

Stopped at Launceston for a look at Launceston Castle. The castle dates back to the Norman Conquest, but gained its present form in the 13^th century under Earl Richard of Cornwall. All that remains today are the mound, the stone keep, the ruined gatehouse and parts of the stone wall. Views from the top of the castle over Launceston are fantastic and provided a good photo opportunity.

GJ Churchward's Head Stone

Left Launceston, accessed the M5 and then the M4 motorways and arrived in Swindon about 3:00PM. The road system in Swindon has to be seen to be believed. To describe it as horrendous is an understatement. Navman said the second exit at the ‘magic roundabout’. Sounds easy, however when we got to the ‘magic roundabout’ it is actually 5 roundabouts all round the circumference of the main roundabout - what a nightmare with traffic coming from all directions!!!!! Made it through without incident apart from some more grey hairs for Lynne.

After checking into Jurys Inn (our stop for the night) we braved the road system again and went in search of family history. We found the Headstone of George Jackson Churchward in Christ Church and then made our way to “Churchward Avenue” which was named after George. Even with the assistance from Navman, driving in Swindon is not something I enjoyed.