[ad name=”intheboatshed-post”]
Pilot gigs at Cadgwith – as usual, click on the
thumbnails for much bigger photos
There’s something very sweetly charming about the tiny Cornish cove village of Cadgwith, and the Cadgwith Pilot Gig Club’s kind invitation to look at their boats is entirely in keeping with the pleasant tenor of the place.
They’re saving up to pay for a new gig, however, as their boats are apparently having trouble keeping up with the leaders in races! Please contribute, if you can. The photo below explains the problem:
Cadgwith Pilot Gig Club needs your dosh!
Cadgwith beach, fishermen’s chapel, and
an unexplained plaque
The beach and its fishing boats surrounded by granite buildings and jagged schist rocks are unforgettable, as is the romantic little fishermen’s chapel.
And what about that plaque? I don’t know who these people were but I notice that the club has a boat named after Buller.
No doubt that wall could tell some stories. Presumably no-one sings now, as people hardly sing in public anywhere now unless they’ve got a geetar and a public address system – but what kind of progress is that anyway? And have you noticed that whistling has died out? Can you remember hearing someone whistle in the acrobatic way the old boys used to do when we were all kids?
It must be time for some songs again soon…
If you’re going to Cornwall you may need this: The Rough Guide to Cornwall
I remember the postman whistling as he came up the path when I was a child. And my father had his own tune which he whistled to let us know he was arriving home after a day out at work. This tune had two parts like a question and answer and if we were out with him and got lost, we could whistle one part and he would whistle the other back to reassure us he was close by. Did anyone else's father do this?
Just thought you would like to know that Buller and Hartley were fisherman in the village and singing was and still is a part of village life. Next time you are here come into the pub on Friday evening and you will hear some fantastic traditional songs (and a few new ones too). In fact, singing is a big part of the Cornish culture with many choirs and singing groups. The Cadgwith singers are much in demand to sing at events on a regular basis. It is never rehearsed, is unaccompanied and always with a beer in hand. It normally starts after 10pm and often goes on until 1am. On warm summer evenings it happens outside, under the stars. There is a sample on YouTube of the Cadgwith Singers at Flora Day in Helston.