Summer plans and winter jobs in Cornwall

St Michael's Mount at dusk

I think people often wonder what happens in a B&B in winter - do we hibernate to wait for the return of Summer perhaps. Well the answer is  we keep pretty busy - it's amazing how the amount of work expands to fill the space - in the traditional manner.

Here at Ednovean Farm we take the opportunity to start the education of some of the young horses that we have bred, in the quieter winter months.

Charles with Toffee a young Holstein gelding this very wet Sunday

Each week the young horses learn to perform more tasks and gain in strength and suppleness, until eventually they will be ready to ride.....with negotiation of course!

Magic one of  our spanish stallion Danilon's sons

Occasionally we venture away from the farm - My husband Charles surprised me with supper at our local pub the other night - it could have been because I offered to make my "Famous beef casserole" of course!!

We we walked down across the fields in the twilight to the Victoria Inn down in the Perranuthnoe and spent the evening tucked up beside the log burning stove enjoying a delicious supper by candle light. As we walked home again in the darkness, under a velvety black sky studded with stars, I thought how  strange it was that our feet could feel the well trodden grove of the footpath in the darkness from the passage of feet, over the year by some inner instinct. I stopped at the top of the hill to admire the ring of lights around Mounts Bay a saw the moon on its back above St Michael's Mount.

Supper at the Victoria inn

Still my thoughts have started to turn towards summer accommodation and this week I put together a blog for my guests to help them plan their days out. I spent quite a few evening
researching some of the dates ( about which I must admit to having a hopeless memory!) and turned up some surprising facts - Penzance was raided by the Spanish who burnt most of the Medieval houses before holding a mass and setting sail again or that Turkish pirates were still capturing slaves as late as the 17c. Dear, dear, what a wild and dangerous place it was. if you would like to check out my first suggestions for a visit to Cornwall, try my Penwith Tour Part one!

St Michael's Mount - one of the first stops on my tour it has been in turn a place
of pilgrimage, an Abbey, a fortress and a home

Spring sunshine and a walk around the garden

The Parterre in the courtyard at Ednovean Farm, Perranuthnoe

The sweet scent of the violets that grow tucked under  the bank of the little lane that leads to our home wafted up to my as I rode home on Danni yesterday and I knew that the promise of Spring was becoming reality. As the day went on it was far too nice to stay inside and I amused myself instead, by taking some pictures of our courtyard where the shadows hung lush and green and the sunshine gently warmed me. Ollie found a suitable haunt on the granite seat that is set as a viewing spot for the courtyard and settled down to warm himself as he supervised my efforts.

Ollie Cat enjoying his favourite granite bench in the spring sunshine

I've stopped seeing that stray solar light - until now that is!

Before long i left the embrace of the courtyard and went out through the gate into the wider garden

The light isn't right to take a photo of the Mount
in the afternoon but still...The courtyard
give way to the sweep of the lawns

stopping to admire the spring Daffodils and the vibrant Tulips that had somehow lept into my shopping basket in the supermarket....Moi???

Spring bulbs below the terrace

The grandly named South Walk because everybody needs a bit of theatre has had a broad path mown in it towards our memory stone that marks the place of so many of our departed pets is flamboyant now with a curtain of Daffodils of course that flatter the old stone gatepost into thinking it may be a sculpture at the end of the vista. I'll set the benches back out so that our guests can admire the sun setting behind the St Micheal's Mount as the season goes on.

A long path cut through the grass in a wilder part of the
garden

I have started some more serious work in the garden this week though shaping the box that forms a rhythmical planting up to our entrance gate - i read somewhere that is is OK to shape box then and really we are a tad busy for it in the middle of the summer season and I wanted the entrance to look smart and welcoming.  But really it has been a lovely weekend for enjoying the spring sunshine!

Our entrance now with neatly shaped box

Beautiful lichen on one of our saddle stones in the car park

I'll leave you with St Micheal's Mount beautiful as always floating beyond the garden and always best photographed in the morning - have a good week.

St Micheal's Mount seen through the sheltering palms
of Ednovean Farm