Visited Morwellham Quay today which is situated way up the Tamar River about 4 miles west of Tavistock. It is an award-winning World Heritage site, featuring a historic port, a copper mine, a working Victorian farm, a railway, some heavy horses and museums of costume and mining.
It lies on the Tamar amidst towering cliffs and gently rolling farmland. There is a narrow gauge mine railway. You travel by train along the banks of the River Tamar before venturing deep underground in the George & Charlotte copper mine. Within there are displays about the harshness of 1800’s mining.
I really enjoyed the place. It wasn't busy, there was plenty to see, my wife and mother-in-law were good company and I got to see an old lady's bottom stuck in mud......lots of mud!
Morwellham is 3km below the tidal limit of the River Tamar near Gunnislake and 32 km from Plymouth. The port occupies the floodplain of a wide meander and is backed by sharply rising and thickly wooded valley sides which rise to over 180m.
It was connected to Tavistock (6.5km away) via the Tavistock Canal, completed in 1817, and also to Devon Great Consols, once the richest copper mine in the world, by a standard gauge mineral railway (and inclined-plane railway) in 1859. The Great Dock and Quay of Devon Great Consols has been recently (2007/08) restored and the historic 100-year old Tamar sailing ship Garlandstone is berthed here.
The dock is heavily silted up and it will be interesting task extracting the Garlandstone from her mud-mire. A continual programme of excavation and conservation is underway. At one time Morwellham quay was the centre of the greatest copper mine/export industry in the whole of the British Empire! You can read more about Morwellham here.
http://www.morwellham-quay.co.uk/index.php?pagetitle=Home
If you want to find out more about the Tamar sailing ship Garlandstone, these two sites will get you started.
http://www.swmaritime.org.uk/article.php?articleid=25&atype=a
http://www.nationalhistoricships.org.uk/ships_register.php?action=ship&id=136
Meanwhile here are more photos from Morwellham today
Although not sailing up to Calstock tomorrow, I am going to try and sail up as far as Pentille quay on the Tamar, winds permitting. I’ll post reports tomorrow night or Wednesday.
Steve
Looking downstream from Morwellham towards the South west Water HEP plant
from when ships used to tie up at the quays
a simple railway point lever
done by a very talented gentleman
I really enjoyed the place. It wasn't busy, there was plenty to see, my wife and mother-in-law were good company and I got to see an old lady's bottom stuck in mud......lots of mud!
a lovely little run high above the river
lovely old buildings and textures
Morwellham is 3km below the tidal limit of the River Tamar near Gunnislake and 32 km from Plymouth. The port occupies the floodplain of a wide meander and is backed by sharply rising and thickly wooded valley sides which rise to over 180m.
low tide
the old ships chandler
It was connected to Tavistock (6.5km away) via the Tavistock Canal, completed in 1817, and also to Devon Great Consols, once the richest copper mine in the world, by a standard gauge mineral railway (and inclined-plane railway) in 1859. The Great Dock and Quay of Devon Great Consols has been recently (2007/08) restored and the historic 100-year old Tamar sailing ship Garlandstone is berthed here.
the Garlandstone
lots of foxgloves in flower
The dock is heavily silted up and it will be interesting task extracting the Garlandstone from her mud-mire. A continual programme of excavation and conservation is underway. At one time Morwellham quay was the centre of the greatest copper mine/export industry in the whole of the British Empire! You can read more about Morwellham here.
http://www.morwellham-quay.co.uk/index.php?pagetitle=Home
If you want to find out more about the Tamar sailing ship Garlandstone, these two sites will get you started.
http://www.swmaritime.org.uk/article.php?articleid=25&atype=a
http://www.nationalhistoricships.org.uk/ships_register.php?action=ship&id=136
Meanwhile here are more photos from Morwellham today
she's in a silted up grand dock
masses of anchor chain on deck
wire and rope hawsers
No. 2 dock, all silted up
the little electric tram
this man was a pleasure to watch
what a fantastic craftsman
Steve
captions please?
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