Black & White photo: A corner of Tintagel Castle

Yesterday I shared the first part of our visit to Tintagel Castle where we explored the remains of the castle on the headland. I left it as we headed off to find a spot to eat our lunch and promised to share the second half of our trip next Saturday, but I couldn't resist sharing a black and white shot of the castle ruins on the mainland before then.

For me this photo is all about the texture and the light and I think that makes it a great shot for the black and white treatment, what do you think?

Tintagel Castle and 148 steps for starters...

It was last September that we were in Cornwall - I'm not sure how it can be quite that long ago already but either way it's about time I shared the pictures of our visit to Tintagel Castle with you. Looking back at them this week, it was quite a day and there's a few to choose from and I've a feeling it'll take more than one photo-heavy post to tell you more about the place which is the legendary birthplace of King Arthur...

The site of the castle has been inhabited since between the 5th and 7th centuries AD when a prosperous community was based there but it wasn't until later in the 12th century that it gained international literary fame and named by Geoffrey of Monmouth as the place where the legendary King Arthur was conceived.

English Heritage, who maintain the site think this "may have been what inspired Richard, Earl of Cornwall, younger brother of Henry III, to site his castle at Tintagel in the 1230s. The castle had fallen into disrepair by 1330, but its associations with the Arthurian legend have helped to foster the site’s continuing international renown." 

Despite the disrepair, the ruins provide some stunning views and an insight into what life in a castle might be like. Sadly on our visit there were no maps of the site available as English Heritage "had run out" so we wandered around slightly in the dark, making do with the signage available. We were though offered the chance to buy a full guide at the full price, which we declined and if I'm honest I was a little disappointed by this and by the lack of foresight to provide some basic information - for me, a photocopy of the layout would have helped put things into context and helped us plan our visit. It's probably the only time I'll visit Tintagel Castle and it's the first English Heritage site I've visited, and as they say you don't get a second chance to make a first impression.

But map aside, you can see we had fabulous weather and the castle and the scenery were fantastic.

We started by exploring the castle on the headland - there's 148 steps up from the bridge to the wooden door - at the top we paused and looked over to the part of the castle on the mainland, and the steps up to that, and decided that was probably on the "after lunch" exploring list!

There's spectacular views along the Cornish coast too, and as seemed to be the case for this trip I quickly found a seagull that was happy to pose for a picture or two!

It wasn't long before we found The Tunnel and although little is known about it, including its date, it is known that it was cut using metal tools and while its purpose is also unknown, it's thought it may have been used as a medieval cold store.

This is the entrance and as we stepped down into it we weren't quite sure what to expect.

But as you get further into the tunnel, it opens out and you can see all the way through. The workmanship is incredible, but it's a shame that more isn't known about it.

And once through the tunnel this is your view, inside the temperature was definitely lower but I do wonder if it was intended as a cold store, why it was made as a tunnel rather than a cave...

Out of the tunnel and we continued to explore the headland admiring the strata of the rock and the views out to sea, the whole place had a special atmosphere which I wasn't expecting, but maybe that King Arthur legend really did have roots here.

LOOKING ACROSS THE HORIZON

LOOKING DOWN

LOOKING INLAND

Once we'd had our fill of the views and been entertained long enough by the seagulls, we decided some lunch was in order - and we saw the perfect spot on the next headland along, and from our vantage point we could make out some paths too.  

So with a rough plan in place we set off and of course what goes up, must go down. And then down some more!

With the steps under our belt (for now) we briefly admired the view from Tintagel Haven before setting off in search of the perfect lunch spot. I'm going to leave it there for today and will continue our visit to the mainland part of Tintagel Castle and some views from where we had lunch on the National Trust's Barras Nose next Saturday - hope to see you then!

An original FatBoy burger at FatBoy's Diner

After a busy Saturday and Sunday of the Mayday Bank Holiday weekend, on the Monday we managed to sneak in a cycle ride.  It wasn't until the afternoon though that we left home and headed towards what seemed a busier-than-usual Greenwich Park. Infact it was so busy as we left the park and headed for the one-way system and the Greenwich foot tunnel that my bell got stuck in the on position as I was dinging it so much at pedestrians as they sauntered across and along the road.

That was relatively stressful (and more stressful than it should have been) but on the one way system one lady just stepped out into the road with her buggy right in front of MOH, who did well to avoid her and the buggy and stay on his bike. She was clearly in a hurry as the traffic lights were green and the traffic was moving albeit slowly. It's one thing I don't get about buggy's and crossing roads and that's that mum's often a buggy length behind the traffic... Well with the stress levels rising we were glad to get to the foot tunnel, through the river and out the other side. A quick cycle later and we had a brief stop at MOH's office before deciding that it would be a good move to avoid a busy Greenwich on the way home.

This meant a change of plan as we'd intended to stop there for food on the way back. But we're resourceful souls and as we'd decided to use the Woolwich foot tunnel on our way back south instead, we decided to stop off at Trinity Buoy Wharf and see if either the Bow Creek Cafe or FatBoy's Diner was open and willing to serve us. And as we'd already tried the cafe, our first choice this time was the Diner.

Before locking the bikes up MOH was despatched to find out if they were open and still serving and if they took cards. The answer to all three questions was yes, so we padlocked our bikes and slid into our booth. The diner was pretty empty, but then again it was nearly five in the afternoon by now - although another couple had arrived just before us, so it wasn't completely empty.

On each of the four tables there was a Consolette which added to the Diner feel. I'm not convinced they worked, but they were a nice touch.

Also on each of the tables was a bowl for the condiments made from a melted record. I remember doing this as a kid - melting the records under the grill until they were pliable, moulding them and then leaving them to "set" - for MOH (a not-so-secret record buff) this was sacrosanct! But for me it was a lovely memory.

We ordered our food - we went for the Original FatBoy's burger and fries - what else? And as we waited for it to be cooked, we admired our surroundings and I took a few photos... This was my view:

And this was MOH's - the red ship is the Trinity Light Ship, that's a lighthouse on a ship. That's the cable car that you can see in the background too, which goes from North Greenwich and the O2 towards The Royal Docks and the Excel centre.

Our soft drinks arrived - well we were cycling - shortly followed by our burgers. After a bite or two I remembered I was going to photograph it... 

Ah, well better a couple of bites gone than no photo at all!

It was a good burger - the Original FatBoy is "two patties with cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles & house sauce" for £6 and with fries on the side for £7. Well it was a bargain, so yeah fries on the side please! For more information see their website.

We definitely need to go back and try the milkshakes, and perhaps another burger... And fries!

As we cycled off, I spotted an unusual view of the O2 which made me smile - it's not often that you see it caged!

And then it was off towards the Woolwich Foot Tunnel, which after our previous trip (see Cycle Routes: March) we found at the first attempt! And our almost 20km cycle surely helped work off some of that burger...