Turning up the heat!

What a hot summer we are having!  We haven't had any meaningful rain for a couple of months and whilst the dry spell has been great for the harvest here at Trevethoe it is now taking its toll on the grass fields - as well as our garden and allotment!  However, it's been lovely to have the sunshine and I'm sure the rain will appear at some point and then we can complain about that too!

Since my last post Horseshoe Cottage is really starting to take shape.  A new porch has been built and faced using the granite stones we took out from the old porches and the chimney breast.  As a result, this 'new' extension will weather really nicely in time to blend in with the front of the cottage. We're hoping the roof will go on in the next couple of weeks.

We have almost finished first fix of plumbing and electrics - just waiting for the electrician to return to finish off downstairs.  The first floor is looking more complete having been fully plastered and slate windowsills installed which are looking really good.  Our plasterer has done such an amazing job on the bedrooms and landing - can't wait for him to work his magic on the ground floor! 

We're going to clean up the exposed beams which will add a bit of character to a few areas of first floor landing and bedrooms.

Jason cut and helped fit these lovely slate window sills - really happy we decided to do this as they look great!

The ceilings are up and insulated downstairs ready for skimming. A bit of work to do here yet, but we have a list to tick off and we're getting through it!

We have no trades here for a couple of weeks now, so it's back to the 'A-team' of Jason and myself - we have a list of jobs to get done whilst we have the place to ourselves.  We need to dismantle the downstairs bathroom, take down the wall and also cut through a new doorway - back to the drill hammer for a while!  There are holes to get through the thick granite walls for waste pipes for the new upstairs bathroom and we need to clear out 'stuff' that has accumulated downstairs  so that it's clear for the plasterer to work when he comes back to skim the ceilings. We're also hoping to do more exterior painting whilst it's dry - the worry is when it DOES start to rain, it won't know when to stop!

I think once downstairs has been plastered, it's going to really start to feel much closer to finishing...we're getting quotes for stairs and measuring out the floor plan for underfloor heating and trying to get all our ducks in a row.  There's definitely a chink of light at the end of the tunnel!

A coastal walk to share...

It's been quite some time since we've managed a nice walk and at last we escaped at the weekend over to Falmouth to complete a 6 mile circular ramble from Maenporth Beach, around Rosemullion Head and part way up the Helford to return to the car via fields.

Luckily it was a little cooler over on that coast and we very much enjoyed exploring a stretch we'd not visited before with the water almost always in view either out to sea or up the Helford River watching the boats coming and going

We followed a route on the iWalkCornwall app which never seems to let us down and gives local information as you reach certain points. If you visit Cornwall and want a variety of walks, I would heartily recommend using this app which you have on your phone and it guides you around the walk using GPS.  All the walks are circular and vary in length and level of difficulty - its accuracy is very good and it even alerts you if you go astray.

We made a little diversion recommended by the app down to Prisk Cove which is a shingle beach just outside the mouth of the Helford River.  It is reported to be the best rock pooling site in Cornwall with a diverse range of seaweeds and marine life - unfortunately the tide was in when we got there but we did walk along the shoreline and collect a pocketful of shells!

It's surprising how many little pockets of Cornwall we haven't been to - there is an endless supply of fabulous walks to enjoy whether along our stunning coastline or across the rugged moorland; along rivers or through woodland.  We feel very lucky to live where we do, we don't often feel the need for a holiday away although we did manage a few days away in June...

Across the border...

We did escape across the border in June for a couple of days to Dartmoor to celebrate our wedding anniversary - 30 years and I'm not sure who deserves the medal the most!  We did some great walks whilst away - and although it's Devon I don't mind recommending it.  It's certainly somewhere you could stop and explore on the way to or from Cornwall!

I will share a few pictures of our walks on Dartmoor, though I would add that we have some wonderful moorland here in West Cornwall (Penwith Moors) as well as Bodmin Moor of course (I hope that disclaimer lessens the disloyalty of sharing images of Devon here on a Cornish website!)

Until next time...

So, we have plenty to be getting on with over the coming weeks with the Cottage - hopefully we can factor in some more walks to share before the next blog post, in Cornwall of course!

Hope you like how the cottage is shaping up - it feels like a very long journey we've been on and we're very much looking forward to the point that we can decorate and furnish and let you see what you can expect if you come and stay with us.  

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Best wishes

Tanya x