One of my favourite "Shacks".

I wonder how long it will be before some planner or developer decides that this little corner of the the boatyard at Mount Wise, on the banks of the Tamar in Devonport, needs "tidying up".

The Regeneration of Devonport (3)

The towered building at the end of this street is the old Devonport Market Hall.

A market began operating in this building in 1835, and although damaged by bombing in 1941 it continued in use until 1956. Then it was taken inside the extended boundary of the Royal Dockyard, to become a naval store facility.
Now that much of "The Wall" (see yesterday's post), has been demolished it has re-emerged from its enforced separation from the community, and it will be interesting to see how imaginative its new uses will be.

The Regeneration of Devonport (2)

In yesterday's post I mentioned that very large tracts of Devonport are just beginning to emerge from fifty or so years behind "The Wall", which was erected to contain the expanded Dockyard during the Cold War Era, driving an ugly wedge right through the heart of the community.

This is "The Wall", and as you can see, there are still sections that have not yet been demolished.

However there are now vistas that have been impossible for the best part of half a century. For example, we couldn't have seen St Aubyn's Church from this distance because we would have been inside "The Wall", and its height would have blocked everything but the top of the spire.

The Regeneration of Devonport (1)

The regeneration and re-population of an enormous area of Devonport marches on. Following its devastation, by bombing in 1941, and then its disappearance for fifty or so years behind the walls of the Royal Naval Dockyard, as  the naval base was progressively extended in the immediate post war era..

However in the Post Cold War era, as the Fleet and the Dockyard have reduced in size, large tracts of land have been released for regeneration and a whole new community is beginning to take shape.

This is Fore Street.

This façade, of one of the only three buildings left intact in Fore Street after the bombing in 1941, has been incorporated into the new Fore Street

This was the scene in 1941 as sailors help with the initial work of clearing the rubble following the air raids.

The Naval War Memorial on Plymouth Hoe.

        

                                               They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:

                                               Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
                                               At the going down of the sun and in the morning.
                                               We will remember them.
           
                                                                                                               

A great morning for a 10 mile run.

The hundreds of competitors in the annual Plymouth Hoe 10 mile race had a beautiful, crisp, bright morning for their event on Sunday. Here the course took them on a loop through the streets of  Devonport, before the finish at the Brickfields.

The Old Fence

As I was wandering through Devonport the other day, this section of broken down wooden fence reminded me of some of the series of pieces of work by the famous British Abstract artist,  

Patrick Heron (1920 - 1999).

Heron was born in Leeds, Yorkshire, but his family moved to St Ives in Cornwall in 1925 and by 1944-5 he was part of the famous group of artists who were known as the St Ives School, along with Ben Nicholson and Barbara Hepworth and many more.

Here is one of his Horizontal Stripes paintings.

To see a large collection of his works Click Here

Looking inland

There is a 360 degree view from the viewing platform at the Mount Wise Signal Station, 

(see yesterday's post).

Here is the scene in the opposite direction from yesterday, looking inland towards Devonport.

Octagons, circles, triangles and a six pointed star

This 40 metre mast was erected in 1998 to commemorate  the former site of the Admiralty's (Semaphore) Signalling Station, at Mt Wise.

It is easy to see why this site was chosen for signalling to Royal navy ships, because from this point there is a commanding view down over the River Tamar and out to Plymouth Sound, and all the ships would pass beneath it on their way to and from the Royal Naval Dockyard.

Whooshhhhh....

You are never too old for speed.

Running for home.

In the calm before the storm.

Balconies (2)

La Coruna has adapted its tradition of enclosed balconies to its present day apartment blocks.

(see yesterday's post)

Balconies (1)

Like many British towns, most of our newly-built apartment blocks are festooned with balconies, as though we enjoy a Mediterranean climate, whereas the reality is that they are too cold and wet for comfort for much of the year.









I was recently in Galicia, in Northern Spain, aptly known as "Green Spain" because of its high rainfall. In the beautiful city of La Coruna they found the solution generations ago.

Average annual rainfall in Plymouth    = 1002.00 mm / 39.40 inches.

Average annual rainfall in La Coruna  = 1008.00 mm / 39.60 inches.

..... And pretty maids all in a row.

The wig shop in Raleigh Street

The Seagull War

The Waterfront Squadron "scrambles" for its next raid on unsuspecting alfresco diners in the city streets.

The Seagull War

The city's seagull population grows each year. 

Waste bins are 'unpacked' daily, by ever more skilful birds. 

The incidence of attacks on people eating in the streets has grown in number and audaciousness.

Designers have come up with a 'seagull proof' waste bin with which to replace the old style bins.

However it is clear that the city centre birds still have plenty of friends.

The Red Army Marches On.

The major renovation of Brunel's iconic railway bridge across the Tamar is under way, and the first small section has been completed.

The work is carried out in the 'tents' that have been erected at various points along the superstructure.

When the chipping away of the old paint and the rust, any cutting and welding needed to repair or strengthen, and the careful repainting of the bare metal has been completed, the 'tent' has to be moved along the bridge to the adjoining section.

The Red Army swarm all over their intricate scaffolding structures. When a train approaches they stop building and climb up to a safe position.

Lady in Red

I love the smell of wood smoke in the morning.

Looking down, from the Tamar Bridge, at the Plymouth suburb of Saltash Passage, 

on a freezing cold, but beautifully clear morning.

Sunrise over Devonport Dockyard

                                                     

                                                               

After Monet's impression of sunrise in the port of Le Havre.

Spherical, Circular, Perpendicular.

A quiet winter corner of the open-air, riverside Lido at Mount Wise.

Winter training for this Cornish Pilot Gig crew.

A Cornish Pilot Gig is a six oared rowing boat, 32 feet long with a beam of four feet ten inches.

The gigs were used to take the pilots out to incoming ships from the Atlantic. In those days the gigs would race to be the first to get their pilot on board the vessel and thus earn the fee.

Today, gig racing is for sport with over a 100 clubs around the world, but mainly centred on Cornwall and the Scilly Isles.The world championships are held each tear in early in May on Scilly Isles.

This boat is named after Ann Glanville of Saltash, mother of fourteen children, who took over her husband's boat and worked as a waterman to support her family when he fell ill.

She then formed an all women crew who competed in local regattas wearing white caps and dresses.






Their success led to competitions all over the country, including one in Fleetwood, attended by Queen Victoria, who congratulated Ann when her crew beat the all male favourites.
Their most famous victory was in 1833 in Le Harvre, France, where they beat the ten best French male crews by 100 yards.