Exhilarating

There's no other way to describe it - the 'whoo hoo' feeling you get from being immersed in the sea. Waves crashing about you, salty mouth, stingy eyes and sunlight sparkling everywhere. We're heading to the north coast, every chance we get to swim and boogie board. The waves here are much bigger than the gentler south coast of Cornwall, hence the need for Lifeguards on the beaches. 

Chapel Porth, near St Agnes is a favourite destination. You drop down into a steep winding valley, with sides marked by industrial spoil. Old engine houses stand out from the cliffs and at the bottom is the start of a beautiful wide sandy beach. 

Rockpools and pirate caves abound, and when we visited recently there were dozens of small purple jellyfish washed up, luckily non-stingers. 

Chapel Porth is also home to the World Belly Boarding Championships. I think anyone can enter and there are even categories for Best Swim Cap and Best Costume, so I could be in with a chance!

If you go down to the woods today....

We have a beautiful beech woodland in our village, and the sad thing is we rarely go there. It's not far to walk but when you've carried two children back up the hill more than once, you tend to look for your adventures elsewhere. 

It really is beautiful though, with a rushing stream, quiet pools and dappled light. It has a timeless quality that makes it feel as though it has always been this way. 

There are hints though, that once this was a place of industrial work. 

Hidden amongst ferns and mossy logs are the remains of large stone buildings that formed part of copper and tin mining works. One hundred and fifty years ago, the woods would have formed a backdrop to a noisy, dirty, sweaty landscape.

Which just goes to show, that sometimes nature can re-claim our work for her own.