Isles of Scilly, Cornwall, England
The sun, like Vulcan’s Forge, illuminates the eastern sky, reflects in the clouds, blows a steady breeze from his bellows, making small chop across a sea marching westward, with only the occasional crest of foam, no more than beer on a moustache, and that too turned red before it disappeared. This beautiful morning finds us most of the way to Cornwall and the extreme southwest of Great Britain, but there is still no land in sight… just perfect on this young, new day at sea.
Before lunch, we could see land, the Isles of Scilly, low and dangerous for the bold and colorful mariners before radar and GPS, but still mysterious, exotic, this ragged toe of Britain, the land beyond Land’s End. We traverse a narrow passage, naked rocks punctuate the shallow waters and the tide is reaching full moon low. “Captain beware!” The wreckage of many an unfortunate ship surround these islands. Without an incident, indeed, without even a telltale trickle of sweat (What fun is that?), the Captain smoothly brings us into the anchorage between Saint Mary’s and Tresco Islands.
After lunch, even the Zodiac drivers are caught up in the spirit of the place. “Argh! There’s a rock out there, between the ship and the landing!” “It’s best to pass around it!” one worthy salt ejaculates. “Aye!” we all shout and gave it dark glances at each passage. Silly perhaps, but in the next few hours the tide will rise 15 feet, it is prudent to mark the spot.
Once ashore it is an easy, pleasant stroll to the Tresco Gardens. We pass flowers and ferns, birds and small children with funny plastic shoes. The gardens are beautiful, eclectic and surprising. The Isles of Scilly are bathed in the warm waters of the Gulf Stream and many an exotic southern bloom can thrive here. There are plants from the Canary Islands, coastal California, Africa and Australia too. And wood nymphs? No, I looked, but there is a stature of Gaia, the Spirit of the Earth and what better place than these beautiful, but perilous islands: beauty and danger, fire and water, now that’s life!
The sun, like Vulcan’s Forge, illuminates the eastern sky, reflects in the clouds, blows a steady breeze from his bellows, making small chop across a sea marching westward, with only the occasional crest of foam, no more than beer on a moustache, and that too turned red before it disappeared. This beautiful morning finds us most of the way to Cornwall and the extreme southwest of Great Britain, but there is still no land in sight… just perfect on this young, new day at sea.
Before lunch, we could see land, the Isles of Scilly, low and dangerous for the bold and colorful mariners before radar and GPS, but still mysterious, exotic, this ragged toe of Britain, the land beyond Land’s End. We traverse a narrow passage, naked rocks punctuate the shallow waters and the tide is reaching full moon low. “Captain beware!” The wreckage of many an unfortunate ship surround these islands. Without an incident, indeed, without even a telltale trickle of sweat (What fun is that?), the Captain smoothly brings us into the anchorage between Saint Mary’s and Tresco Islands.
After lunch, even the Zodiac drivers are caught up in the spirit of the place. “Argh! There’s a rock out there, between the ship and the landing!” “It’s best to pass around it!” one worthy salt ejaculates. “Aye!” we all shout and gave it dark glances at each passage. Silly perhaps, but in the next few hours the tide will rise 15 feet, it is prudent to mark the spot.
Once ashore it is an easy, pleasant stroll to the Tresco Gardens. We pass flowers and ferns, birds and small children with funny plastic shoes. The gardens are beautiful, eclectic and surprising. The Isles of Scilly are bathed in the warm waters of the Gulf Stream and many an exotic southern bloom can thrive here. There are plants from the Canary Islands, coastal California, Africa and Australia too. And wood nymphs? No, I looked, but there is a stature of Gaia, the Spirit of the Earth and what better place than these beautiful, but perilous islands: beauty and danger, fire and water, now that’s life!
