The Shamrock was built in 1899 as a Tamar sailing barge, named after an Irish entry to the Americas Cup Race in that year. After a long working life she ended up being used as a scrap iron store in Plymouth. She was rescued in 1973 and taken to Cotehele where she was restored over 6 years. She is now the largest Tamar barge still fully working and occasionally makes trips up and down the river.
By Victorian times, the parish of Calstock had more lime kilns than any other in Cornwall, with many of these along the river at Lower Kelly and Cotehele where coal and limestone were landed. Often culm (a local soft, peaty coal) was used as the fuel. The coal and limestone was loaded into the top of the kilns and was allowed to burn for a week; this produced quicklime which was raked out of the bottom. The lime from the kilns was transported by horse and cart to the nearby farms and market gardens.
Cotehele House belonged to the Edgcumbe family for nearly 600 years before being donated to the National Trust in 1947, together with over 1000 acres of land. The house is largely Tudor, and by the 1750s it was already attracting tourists seeking to visit a historic building.
Cotehele house includes a turret clock which is powered using weights on a rope wrapped around a capstan, rather than a pendulum. The clock has no face and instead strikes a bell on the hour. It is the earliest turret clock in its original position and still working, and possibly the earliest working turret clock in the world. The design was relatively common in the 14th Century but most were replaced and scrapped.
The gardens at Cotehele were constructed during Victorian times and are now Grade II* listed in the Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historical Interest. The formal Italian terraced gardens around the house are connected by a tunnel to the Valley Garden, which is planted with trees including rhododendrons and azaleas which produce profuse amounts of brightly-coloured flowers in spring. Within the Valley garden is a Victorian Summerhouse and former mediaeval elements including an exceptionally well-preserved dovecote and a pond which was originally used to farm carp to supply fish for the kitchens.
Bluebells are very vulnerable to trampling. The reason for this is that when their leaves emerge in the early part of the year, they are powered by the stored sugars in their bulbs. Sunlight is very limited at this time of the year and even more so in the shady places where they grow. In order to survive, they then need to photosynthesise flat-out to store enough starch in the bulb for next year's growth. If a bluebell’s leaves are crushed, it cannot photosynthesise and and doesn't have enough reserves left in its bulb to grow new ones. It's therefore important to stick to footpaths in bluebell woodland and best to take photos with a zoom lens from there as wandering around in the bluebells to take photos will inadvertently kill them.
Generations of plants and algae alternate between two different kinds of life form. One generation produces spores and these grow through cell division into a new organism. This then produces eggs and sperm which combine to grow into the first kind of organism again.
In the case of flowering plants, the organism that produces the eggs and sperm is only a tiny beast consisting of a few cells that is contained entirely within its parent. In mosses, it's the other way round: the organism that produces the eggs and sperm is the main one and the spore-producer is a smaller plant, reliant on its parent. In the case of algae, both are independent organisms in their own right.
The evolutionary advantage is that the overhead of sexual reproduction can be deferred for a generation, so the spore-bearing generation can be optimised to produce loads of clones cheaply with the safety net that next time around the genes will get a mix-up. That gene mix up from the sexual reproduction phase provides insurance in case something in the environment changes or there is some dodgy genetic copying that would scupper ongoing generations of clones.
The mines in the valley at Danescombe extracted tin, copper and arsenic. The ore was transported down the tramway which is now the track along the valley and was loaded into boats at Lower Kelly Quay.
During the 9th Century, the Danes are thought to have landed in the Tamar Estuary; the Cornish allied with the Danes to fight against the Saxons who were at the time pushing into East Cornwall. It is said that Danescombe takes its name from the Danes landing and settling in the valley. At one time this was celebrated in Calstock with locals dressed as Vikings rowing up the river to Danescombe.
Just before the path ends in a junction, it passes some iron railings. This is a well and is recorded in the first Ordnance Survey map from the 1880s.
The early purple orchid gets its common name from its spring flowering time - it appears at a similar time to bluebells although it lasts a bit longer. It has a Latin name meaning "virile" which is in keeping with the word "orchid" coming from the Greek word for testicle (on account of the shape of the tuber).
The rate at which a tree grows varies through the year depending on the amount of light and moisture available. This is visible in a sawn tree trunk as a ring where the wider lighter area wood is laid down more quickly in spring-early summer and then the narrow darker area more slowly in late summer-autumn. Each ring corresponds to a year and so the age of the tree can be worked out by counting the rings.
Buddleia are originally from northwest China and Japan where they grow in forest clearings, on riverbanks and on limestone outcrops where they are able to survive with minimal nutrients. They were introduced into the UK as an ornamental plant in the late 19th Century and can found in many gardens. Some have escaped and established a niche on industrial land which resembles their native limestone outcrops.
The shrub is commonly known as the Butterfly Bush as the flowers are profuse, rich in nectar and are in the shape of champagne flutes; butterflies and bees have sufficiently long drinking apparatus to reach the bottom.
The plant has two types of leaf; the broad green leaves are replaced with shorter hairy grey leaves during the winter which are more resistant to frost and the drying effect of cold winds.
Squirrels are rodents, closely related to chipmunks and slightly more distantly to dormice. The word "squirrel" originates from an ancient Greek word meaning "shadow-tailed", referring to the bushy tail of a squirrel. A family group of squirrels is known as a "drey" (also the word for a squirrel nest). A group of unrelated squirrels is known as a "scurry", though squirrels tend not to hang out in groups.
A railway opened in 1872 to bring minerals from more mines in the area to the Calstock incline leading to the quay. The new railway ran for just over 7 miles to Kelly Bray. At the time, there was no main line nearby so the line was not connected to any other. It wasn't until the early 20th Century that the new railway in Plymouth allowed the Calstock railway to be connected, and much of the trackbed of the East Cornwall Mineral Railway was re-used for the Tamar Valley line.
The bridge crossed an inclined plane of the original East Cornwall Mineral Railway that was abandoned in 1908 when the rest of the mineral railway was re-purposed as part of the Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway.
Rhododendron is a member of the Ericaceae family to which heathers also belong and like its cousins, it is tolerant of acid soils. The word rhododendron is from the Ancient Greek for "rose tree" due to their spectacular flowers. As a result of these, rhododendrons have been popular ornamental plants for over two centuries and the species that we now call the common rhododendron was introduced in 1763. The plants thrive in the UK climate and were once native but were wiped out by the last Ice Age. Being a vigorous plant, common rhododendron was often used as a root stock onto which more fragile but exotically-coloured hybrids were grafted.
Cotehele and Calstock lie within the Tamar Valley AONB.
The Tamar Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty has a similar conservation status to a National Park. It encompasses an area of 75 square miles around the rivers Tamar, Tavy and Lynher, partly in Cornwall and partly in Devon. This also includes an area of Cornwall and West Devon mining landscape World Heritage Site, 41 county wildlife sites and over 1700 hectares of woodland. It was first suggested in 1963 that the Tamar valley area should be designated but this was only eventually granted in 1995.
In 2006-7 a team from Exeter University were doing surveys to investigate mediaeval silver mines when they accidentally discovered a Roman Fort. This is only the third one found in Cornwall and is the largest. It is thought to have been in use from the 1st Century AD. It was enclosed by two ramparts and ditches and finds have included remnants of furnace-lining, ore and slag which indicate metalworking was taking place. For a long time there was a suspicion that there might have been a Roman military interest in Cornwall's mineral resources and this is some of the first evidence that supports this.
Calstock church was consecrated in 1290, is dedicated to St Andrew and is under the Patronage of The Duke of Cornwall. The current building dates from the 15th Century and includes a mediaeval wall painting which was rediscovered during a Victorian restoration. The porch includes a built-in fireplace, the purpose of which is not definitely known but it is thought that this was believed to keep disease out of the church, along the lines of "keep warm or you'll catch a cold".
The Vikings used crushed conkers to make soap as they contain saponins. As fresh conkers dry out, the saponins are released and scientists have found these repel moths. However no evidence has been found that they repel spiders despite many people believing this to be the case.
The section of the railway across the Calstock viaduct from Bere Alston was built in the 1900s just as the surveying was taking place for the 2nd edition of the OS map. Consequently various sections of the half-built railway are recorded on the map as "Railway in the course of construction" and the viaduct was just a series of pillars at this point. The new railway joined the existing East Cornwall Mineral Railway at Albaston (between Calstock and Gunnislake station) and the new station at Calstock opened in 1908. This created a railway line all the way from Plymouth to Kelly Bray. The section from Kelly Bray to Gunnislake was eventually closed but the remainder survives as the Tamar Valley Line.
Okel Tor mine operated between 1849 and 1887 and extracted primarily copper and arsenic. Tin and lead ore (which also contained silver) were also extracted. In 1865, it was recorded as having two engines and employing 107 people: 80 men, 15 boys and 12 bal maidens.
The name Tamar is documented in the second century and likely to be substantially older. It is thought it might share a common origin with the River Thames and both might stem from an ancient Celtic word meaning "dark". The source of the river is within 4 miles of the North Cornish Coast and the river flows 61 miles south across the peninsula forming the majority of the historic border with Devon. Work is being done by the Environment Agency to improve the water quality of the Tamar and its tributaries by reducing the amount of run-off of phosphate fertilisers into the rivers.
The Calstock viaduct is part of the Tamar Valley railway that was constructed at the start of the 20th Century and still runs between Gunnislake and Plymouth. The viaduct was built between 1904 and 1907 from 11,148 precast concrete blocks. It is 120 feet high with twelve main arches each 60 feet wide, and one mini-arch at the Calstock end. Originally, a steam-powered lift was attached to it which could raise and lower wagons from the quays over 100 feet below.
The first record of Calstock is in the Domesday Book of 1086 when it had 30 villagers and 30 small farms and encompassed 100 acres of woodland as well as pasture land. The name is Old English (stoc means "dwelling" or "place"), reflecting the Saxon influence stretching into this area of Cornwall before Norman times. The place name expert Craig Weatherhill suggests the original meaning may be along the lines of "outlying farm near a bare hill".
The land on the opposite side of the river is Devon which according to Cornish folklore is where the Devil lives. This is apparently not due to Devon's cream tea heresy but due to the Devil's fear of being used as meat to fill pasties in Cornwall!
"Pasty" was another word used for "pie" throughout England from the Middle Ages onward, and did not necessarily imply the characteristic shape and crimping we associate with the Cornish Pasty. A pasty recipe from 1746 contains no veg, just meat (venison), port wine and spices. The first "Cornish pasty" recipe is from 1861 which contained just beef and no veg.
Even during Victorian times, the main meat available to poor people would have been pork. The Cornish dialect word for a pork flatbread eaten in the mines during the 18th and 19th Centuries is hogen (pronounced "hugg-un") which evolved into "oggy" - the dialect word for pasty. The really poor had a "tiddy oggy" (with no meat at all).
The "traditional" Cornish Pasty recipe contains beef, onion, potato and swede (referred to as "turnip" in the local dialect from its more formal name of "Swedish turnip") seasoned with salt and pepper. It's thought that this probably dates from the late 18th Century (when the Poldark novels were set) when potatoes and turnips were a staple diet for the poor but the first documented "traditional" recipe is not until 1929. Over 120 million Cornish pasties are now consumed each year.
The bridge over Lower Kelly once carried the railway incline leading to Danescombe Quay, built in 1859. It consisted of a 1 in 6 gradient leading to the top of the valley. Wagons were lowered on a rope and raised with the help of a steam engine at the top.
Kingfishers are found near slow-moving or still water where they dive to catch fish, as their name implies, but they also eat many aquatic insects, ranging from dragonfly nymphs to water beetles.
The Kingfisher is able to switch between light receptors in the main central area of its eye and a forward-facing set when it enters water, allowing it to judge distances accurately underwater. It is estimated that a female needs to eat over twice her own body weight in order to increase her condition sufficiently for egg laying.
The unmistakable metallic blue and orange birds fly fast and low over the surface of the water so may only be apparent as a blue flash. The pigment in their feathers is actually brown but the microstructure of their features results in light interference patterns which generate the brilliant iridescent blue and orange colours. Unfortunately the result, during Victorian times, was that kingfishers were extensively killed for display in glass cases and for use in hat making. The population has since recovered and is now limited by the availability of suitable waterways.
Chestnut trees grow over the path and green spiny husks containing the nuts can seen in October.
Since chestnuts don't need to hang around for a long time on the ground, they are nutritionally more similar to a cereal - containing principally starch and sugars - than a typical nut. They contain very little fat and are consequently much less calorific than other nuts: the kernels contain around a third of the calories of a similar weight of other nuts.
In 1483, Sir Richard Edgcumbe joined a rebellion against King Richard III. The rebellion failed and Edgcumbe was pursued by the King's troops into the woods at Cotehele. Edgcumbe managed to escape by throwing his hat into the river, giving the impression he had drowned, and lived in exile in Brittany until Henry Tudor took the throne. On his return, Edgcumbe built the chapel in the spot where he had thrown his hat into the river to give thanks for his escape.
The Tamar Discovery Trail was created in the early 21st Century after Tamar Valley AONB was established. The 35 mile route - partly in Cornwall and partly in Devon - was originally indicated by waymarks with an apple symbol which is a reference to the area's horticultural heritage. It was known affectionately as the "apple trail" and some of these are still visible, inscribed into the wooden posts. More recently, waymark arrows with a bee (based on a new logo for Tamar Valley tourism) have been added to the route.
Danescombe Sawmill was opened in 1878 and used a 43 foot waterwheel to drive the sawing machinery. Power from the waterwheel was also used to haul carts up the tramway, which is now the track. These were loaded with timber grown on Cotehele Estate land that was landed on the quay at the bottom of the track. Using just the power from the waterwheel, the mill could saw 2000ft of timber in an hour. Even the sharpening of the saw was mechanised using water power. Despite its efficiency, the mill was relatively short-lived; by 1905 it was disused and had lost its iron roof, which was presumably sold as scrap. Its demise is thought to have been brought about by the closure of the nearby mines as much of the sawn timber was used in the mines.
The small holiday cottage where the track up the Danescombe valley opens out by some buildings is an engine house thought to be built in the mid 1830s for a pumping engine. At this point, it was known as Danescombe Mine. However, it's thought that the mine was first worked for copper and arsenic from the 1820s as Wheal Calstock. The larger engine house slightly further up the valley was built in 1881-2 as part of Cotehele Consols but by 1884 the engine was put up for sale. In 1973, this engine house was converted by the Landmark Trust into a holiday cottage.
The mill building at Cotehele dates back to the 18th century and was further developed during Victorian times. In the 1880s it was known as Murden Mill after the small settlement just upriver and by 1905 both had changed to Morden. It was originally used to grind flour and after this was used for grinding animal feed until the 1960s. It was restored in 2002 for grinding flour, and the mill bakery has also since been revived. The flour is on sale at the mill.
In tidal rivers, the discharge of freshwater and friction with the riverbed effectively "holds back" the rising tide. The further up the tidal region of the river, the shorter the interval between low and high tide and the faster the rising tide comes in when it eventually does.
Biologically, there is no clear distinction between ducks, geese and swans (geese and swans are one lanky subfamily of ducks). Dark-coloured ducks get the equivalent of "grey hairs" with age - their feathers gradually turn white.
The species of duck that you're most likely to encounter is the mallard. Mature males have striking iridescent green heads and dark bodies whilst females look totally different - a brown and white pattern which offers much better camouflage. However, both have a common feature that is unique to mallards - an iridescent blue patch on their wings.
In situations where ducks need to watch out for predators, they can sleep one half of their brain at a time, keeping one eye open for danger. In safer circumstances, ducks will sleep fully.
Male ducks (drakes) have a penis which falls off every autumn and regrows the following spring. The length each year depends on the amount of competition for females and varies up to a maximum of the duck's whole body length.
Ducks can change gender. This happens for about 1 duck in 10,000 and more commonly from female to male than the other way around. It seems to occur in a flock of ducks where there is a significant gender imbalance where it gives the duck that changes a competitive advantage. It's likely that the female to male direction is a bigger evolutionary win because one male can fertilise multiple females.
Feeding bread to ducks is quite bad for them although not feeding ducks anything at all is potentially worse as many have now become reliant on being fed. White bread lacks many of the nutrients that ducks need but ducks will gorge on it to the point of ignoring other foods, effectively becoming junk food addicts. The problem is that by filling up on just this, they can become malnourished, deformed and even die. Some healthier things to feed ducks are leftover peas, sweetcorn, seeds, rice and salad.
Full page maps cannot be printed due to copyright and terms of use.