The settlement of St Newlyn East was recorded in 1311 as Villa de Sancta Newelina, and takes its name from the church of St Newlina. It is thought that both the settlement and church date from early mediaeval times. Locally, the settlement is usually referred to as "Newlyn East" (more often without the "St").
National Cycle Route 32 passes through the village, along the road that you emerge onto at the T-junction.
The National Cycle Network is coordinated by the charity Sustrans. It began with one route in Bristol in 1984 and now consists of around 15,000 miles of signposted cycle routes known as National Cycle Routes. These each have a number and are constructed using a combination of roads typically chosen to have light traffic and some traffic-free tracks which are open to cycles.
National Cycle Route 3 runs 338 miles from Bristol to Land's End. The route is a mixture of lanes, byways and some tracks not open to road traffic including the upper section of the Camel Trail from Wenfordbridge to Dunmere.
National Cycle Route 32 splits off Route 3 at Dunmere and rejoins it again at Truro. Using the lower half of the Camel Trail and then predominantly lanes, the route runs through Padstow, St Columb Major and Newquay for a total of 51 miles.
The earliest stone church on the site was probably built in the late 12th century. Remains of Norman masonry still exist in the lower parts of some of the walls and the font is also Norman. The church was enlarged in the 14th Century with further extensions including the tower in the 15th Century. The building today is the result of a careful restoration in 1883-4, re-using as much of the 15th Century masonry and ornamentation as possible including the roof bosses.
The Gothic lantern cross head, now located next to the font in the church, was found buried in the churchyard in the early 1900s. It was documented as being at Treludderow in 1755 and had probably been moved from the churchyard during Victorian times as it was standard practice for the clergy of the time to rescue/harvest antiquities from the parish.
According to legend, the fig tree on the church wall is cursed and anyone picking a leaf will die within a year:
In ancient days Newlina came
The Saint who gave this place its name
Her staff she planted and she prayed
Let here a Church to God be made
This fig tree is her staff folks say
Destroy it not in any way
Upon it lays a dreadful curse
Who plucks a leaf will need a hearse
The game of conkers was first recorded on the Isle of Wight in 1848, but similar games were played in Britain and Ireland with hazelnuts or even snail shells before this. In recent years, many schoolchildren have become disinterested in playing conkers, preferring electronic gadgets that simulate the game by catapulting birds rather than horse chestnuts. However there has been a surge in interest from adults who would prefer to physically bash something, preferably less expensive than an iPhone. The World Conker Championship has been held in England since 1965 and now attracts competitors from all over the world.
Rooks can be distinguished from other members of the crow family by their pale, hairless, pointy beak (other members of the crow family have black beaks and also a moustache on the top of their beak).
Metha Wood has a nice display of bluebells in the spring.
During periods of cold weather, spring flowers, such as bluebells, have already started the process of growth by preparing leaves and flowers in underground bulbs during summer and autumn. They are then able to grow in the cold of winter, or early spring, by using these resources stored in their bulb. Once they have flowered, the leaves die off and the cycle begins again.
Other species (such as cow parsley or dandelions) require warm weather before they are able to germinate and grow. With the warmer springs induced by climate change, bluebells lose their "early start" advantage, and can be out-competed.
To support their massive weight, trees produce a biochemical compound called lignin which has a cross-linked polymer structure that makes it very rigid. Because it's so tough, most fungi and bacteria are unable to break it down. The main fungus that has worked out a way to do it is known as white rot.
You may have noticed the red colour of the riverbeds in the valley.
When the acidic solution containing dissolved metals from mines (known as Acidic Mine Drainage) meets other water, it is diluted and the reduced acidity causes dissolved iron to precipitate out as orange or yellow hydroxides, colouring the water and sticking to anything in the watercourse. In the case of copper mines, copper stays dissolved in the water and at higher levels this can be toxic to wildlife, particularly fish.
Where there is a large amount of water coming from a mine which is not rendered harmless by natural dilution, reed beds have been found to be very effective in treating the acidic water. Plants and bacteria in the reed bed convert the dissolved metals into insoluble compounds that are trapped within the reed bed. There are even suggestions that the metals may be commercially recoverable after they have been concentrated in the reed bed over a period of time.
The settlement of Nanhellan was first recorded in 1376 as Nanhillyn. Other than the first part of the name being the Cornish for "valley", nothing is known about the origin of the name - it could based on a mediaeval personal name. During Victorian times there was also a malthouse here.
Many hoverflies have colour patterns that mimic stinging bees and wasps so predators avoid them even though they don't sting. They are quite convincing con-artists and when caught will push down their abdomen in a simulated stinging action to keep up the illusion.
Whilst the global human population is around 8 billion, the insect population is estimated at around 10 quintillion. In other words, there are in the order of a billion insects for every human.
Scientists have been surprised to find trout populations in small streams where mine water has been draining in over a number of decades such as the one at Hayle.
Dissolved metals are normally toxic to trout but there is evidence that the brown trout population in the Hayle river has evolved to be able to cope with the high mineral levels in the water. A gene responsible for the production of a protein which detoxifies metals was found to be highly expressed in the Hayle river population and other proteins were found that bind and transport iron (one of the most common metals leeching from the mines).
The steam along the valley here also has a population of small trout.
Lappa Valley Steam Railway follows part of the route of one of the tramways built by Victorian entrepreneur Joseph Treffry. After building his tramway from Par through the Luxulyan Valley, Treffry built tramways from Newquay which included one to East Wheal Rose which was opened in 1849 for hauling ore from the mine to Newquay harbour.
Note that there is no entry to the Lappa Valley Steam Railway from the public footpath. However, the car park and entrance are only a couple of minutes drive from the end of the walk by turning left at the crossroads towards the church, left again at the staggered crossroads, and following the road past the pub.
East Wheal Rose was a lead mine opened in 1835. Silver and zinc also existed within the lead ore at levels that made it profitable to commercially extract these. By 1857 four engines were working the mine but after the company got into financial trouble the mine was abandoned. It re-opened in 1881 with a new engine house but closed again in 1888. The mine had more than 20 shafts with workings reaching 150 fathoms.
East Wheal Rose is situated in a natural bowl formed by the valley of a small stream. In 1846 a freak thunderstorm caused a flash flood. Despite attempts to create dams to divert the water away from the mineshafts, water inundated the mine workings where around 200 people were at work and flooded it up to the 50 fathom level. 38 men died and a miner at nearby North Wheal Rose also died.
Lead was one of the earliest metals discovered by the human race and was already in use by the start of the Bronze Age - in fact part of the "Stone Age" probably should be called the "Lead Age". Not only was it abundant and relatively easy to extract, it was extremely versatile, being easily molten, moulded and was corrosion resistant.
The ancient Romans used lead for making water pipes and this continued until 1970. In hard water areas, limescale soon lined the pipes, preventing lead dissolving into the water. However, areas with acidic soils, such as Cornwall, would have been much more prone to lead poisoning from water pipes.
The heathland on the downs provides a habitat suitable for adders.
Adders are easily identified by the pretty diamond pattern along their backs. Also known as vipers, these are Britain's only venomous snake. Adders are a protected species, are not aggressive, and generally only bite if trodden on or picked up (unsupervised dogs or children may attempt the latter).
The lead ore found in Cornwall is a form of lead sulphide known as galena which often contains an appreciable amount of silver. This was first smelted to produce "argentiferous lead" and then the silver was separated by a process known as "cupellation". The molten alloy of the 2 metals was placed in an oxygen rich furnace which caused the lead, but not the silver, to oxidise. The lead oxide was then absorbed into a calcium-rich material such as the ash from bones or seashells, leaving the liquid metal silver on the surface of the "cake". The lead oxide could later be converted back into lead by smelting it with charcoal.
Damselflies are predators similar to dragonflies but are easily distinguishable by the way their wings fold back parallel to the body when at rest whereas the dragonflies' wings are fixed at a right angle to the body. The Damselfly has a much smaller body than a dragonfly which means it has less stamina for flight. Nevertheless, it can hover, in a stationary position, long enough to pluck spiders from their webs.
Gorse is also known (particularly in the Westcountry) as furze from the Middle English word furs. This itself is from the Old English word fyres, closely related to the Old English word for fire.
Given the rich lead lodes discovered in East Wheal Rose, it was calculated these ran south to the area on the downs with the deep gorge and another mine known as Wheal Constance was opened at the top of the hill with shafts on either side of the valley. Ore containing lead and silver was found and raised in significant quantities. However the location of the workings beneath the valley streams resulted in problems with water percolating into the mine, causing the mine to be abandoned as a lost cause but it was revived by a new company in 1852 and worked for several more years. Some of the tracks up the valley are the remains of tramways from the mine.
The UK is one of the windiest places in Europe and considered as one of the best places in the world for wind power. Around a quarter of the UK's energy already comes from wind power (higher during windy months) and it is now one of the cheapest sources of electricity. Wind turbines last for about 20-25 years until the moving parts wear out and they need to be replaced.
If there are sheep in the field and you have a dog, make sure it's securely on its lead (sheep are prone to panic and injuring themselves even if a dog is just being inquisitive). If the sheep start bleating, this means they are scared and they are liable to panic.
If there are pregnant sheep in the field, be particularly sensitive as a scare can cause a miscarriage. If there are sheep in the field with lambs, avoid approaching them closely, making loud noises or walking between a lamb and its mother, as you may provoke the mother to defend her young.
Sheep may look cute but if provoked they can cause serious injury (hence the verb "to ram"). Generally, the best plan is to walk quietly along the hedges and they will move away or ignore you.
In 1873, Treffry's tramways were taken over by the Cornwall Minerals Railway (CMR) and converted for use by steam locomotives. The project also involved building an extra section of line to link the tramways in the Newquay area with those in the Par/Bugle area. The section through the Luxulyan Valley was bypassed as this involved an inclined plane driven by a waterwheel. The railway originally extended to Fowey but the section of line from Par to Fowey was closed in the 1960s and converted to a private road haul route for china clay.
Collapses in mineral prices caused financial difficulties and lead to attempts to encourage passenger traffic associated with tourism. The struggling CMR was eventually purchased by Great Western Railway in 1896. The section between Par and Newquay remains as a branch line of the national rail network.
The dandelion-like flowers along the coast are most likely to be catsear, also known as false dandelion. Catsear is very salt tolerant, not only growing along the coast but actually in sand dunes. The easiest way to recognise it is by the hairy leaves, hence the name. If you can cope with the texture, the leaves are edible and are much less bitter than dandelion leaves.
Another way to tell them apart is when they are flowering. Although dandelion flowers over quite a long period, the most profuse flowering is in April and May whereas catsear's intense flowering period is in late June and through July. Catsear has neater flowers than dandelion with squarer edges to the petals (but still toothed). The stems supporting the flowers are also solid, in contrast with the hollow stem of the dandelion.
A number of springs rise in the marshes here. All the streams in the Lappa Valley are all tributaries of the River Gannel.
The name of the river is from the Cornish An Ganel meaning "the channel". At high tide, the River Gannel used to be navigable all the way to Trevemper Bridge, and schooners and barges would transport coal, timber and sand to the mining and agricultural industries further inland. In 1838 the East Wheal Rose mine began discharging mine waste into the tributaries of the river. This caused silting and slime to coat the riverbed. Despite complaints to the Admiralty about the impact on the river's navigability, the silting continued.
Since the closure of the mines, the water quality has greatly improved and the Gannel river supports wildlife including salmon and the once common but now endangered European eel. The salt marshes created by the silting have also become an important habitat which is now earmarked for protection within a Marine Conservation Zone.
Just before the buildings, the track crosses over the trackbed of the Newquay to Perranporth railway.
As part of the Cornwall Mineral Railway project, Treffry's tramway to the East Wheal Rose mine was extended to Treamble. Following acquisition by the Great Western Railway, the line was extended to Perranporth for tourism. The 10-mile section from Newquay to Perranporth was intended to open in time for the summer of 1904 but the engineers ran into difficulties with the composition of the bedrock and the line was finally completed on January 2, 1905. The rails were removed in 1964 following the Beeching cuts.
Two settlements in Cornwall were both known locally as Newlyn which wasn't too much of a problem when travel involved a horse or a boat. To disambiguate, the one near Newquay became known as (St) Newlyn East whilst the one next to Penzance is sometimes referred to as Newlyn West or Newlyn-by-Penzance but generally still just "Newlyn". Despite this, there was a period where Wetherspoons proudly displayed that their fish was caught locally in the land-locked location of the former.
During the 18th Century in Oxford, the Wesley brothers began practising their rigorous holy lifestyle which was mockingly referred to as Methodism by their peers due to their methodical practices. John Wesley began open-air preaching to recruit followers to his movement and formed small classes for each community where followers would receive ongoing religious guidance. Wesley always advocated the practise of Methodism as an extension of the Anglican faith and encouraged his followers to attend the parish church regularly. Nevertheless, senior figures within the Church of England feared the effects (or perhaps popularity) of Methodist practices, suggesting that an overdose of the Holy Spirit might be unhealthy for weak minds.
Many houses in the area built in the early 20th Century made use of the waste from the mines for concrete.
During the early 1900s, concrete began to be used for house construction. Sources of sand and gravel were required and the piles of crushed rock on the mine tips provided a free source of material of the perfect granularity. However, some of this contained small amounts of uneconomic ore such as iron pyrites (fool's gold). This is known locally as mundic which is based on the Cornish words for "beautiful stone". These compounds are formed deep in the earth's crust where there is little oxygen but lots of sulphur. Iron would much rather be surrounded by more pert oxygen atoms so in the presence of air and water, the mundic reacts chemically to form iron hydroxide also known as rust. This is less dense (causing the concrete to expand and crack) and also crumbly. The overall result is that the concrete disintegrates over time and houses can fall down. Within Cornwall, mortgage lenders now require a mundic check to be done on any concrete from the first half of the 20th Century.
A short distance up the road to the left, just past the two cemetery gates, is the "village pit".
The circular pit at the end of the village resembles a plain-an-gwarry (Playing Place) but is a Methodist preaching pit built in the 19th Century together with the tea room as a memorial to the men that died in the East Wheal Rose disaster. If was originally a quarry which was already being used for outdoor preaching (due to its proximity to the Methodist chapel) before it was converted as a memorial. The pit was also used for Cornish Wrestling. There are three other similar landscaped preaching pits in Cornwall.
In the 18th Century, Methodist preachers drew large crowds and since large buildings such as Anglican churches weren't available to them, they preached outdoors. As Cornwall is a windy place, a quarry or a pit left behind by mining (such as Gwennap Pit) provided a sheltered place where the preacher could actually be heard.
At the start of the 19th Century, Gwennap Pit was remodelled by local miners to create a neat oval with terraces. This style was copied in 1850 at Indian Queens, and a couple of years later St Newlyn East. A quarter-circle version also exists near St Austell at Whitemoor, first documented in 1871. An old quarry on Tregonning Hill was also used in its unimproved form for Sunday School meetings from the late 1800s.
Rosebay willowherb is a tall plant with a spike of pink flowers in late summer which can often be seen beside paths and tracks. Their long leaves have a distinctive thin, white vein along the centre.
The name "rosebay" dates from at least Tudor times and is thought to be based on loose resemblances of the leaves to bay leaves and the flowers to wild roses. The overall family are also known as "willowherbs" due to the resemblance of the leaves to willow leaves. The two names have since been brought together resulting in the slightly confusing duplicate description of the leaf shape.
Rosebay willowherb is known as fireweed in USA as it's found on burnt sites after forest fires. For similar reasons it was known as London's Ruin after the Great Fire. In the Second World War it was also known as bombweed due to its rapid colonisation of bomb craters.
It is a pioneer species which is good at colonising disturbed ground as its seeds travel long distances in the wind and remain viable in the soil for many years. It was considered a rare species in Britain in the 18th century but spread along the corridors cleared for railways in Victorian times.
Common honeysuckle is a native plant also known as woodbine because it wraps itself around other plants and can cause distortions in their growth also called woodbines. Honeysuckle might be regarded as having plant OCD in that it only ever entwines in a clockwise direction.
Honeysuckle flowers appear from June to August and their fragrance is due to a class of chemical compounds known as jasminoids that occur in, as you might have guessed, jasmine but also Ceylon tea. Honeysuckle is the food plant of the White Admiral caterpillar so keep a look for the butterflies in summer.
In autumn, honeysuckle produces shiny red berries that resemble redcurrants. They are toxic to humans and to dogs, but not to birds.
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