Lizard Point and Falmouth

Bliss
Mon 22 Aug 2016 19:11
I don't think it's possible to get out of Penzance Harbour, and have enough time to cross Mount's Bay and round Lizard Point with favourable tide; you need favourable tide, preferable with some left to help you up to Falmouth. Get it wrong and you might have four knots of tide against and a rough sea, you'd be out there for hours! Another cunning plan required..... we got up at five, along with our neighbours who were lying outside us, (we offered to swap places the previous evening but they declined). Slipped out of the harbour at 5.30, just before the gate closed and then spent three hours motoring into the wind to Mullion Cove, a hazy damp morning windier than expected. We dropped anchor in Mullion Cove, a beautiful, sheltered, spot just a few miles north-west of The Lizard, we spent a few hours there waiting for the tide to turn, had breakfast, a snooze, lunch, and a swim before setting off.

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Mullion Cove


It was still murky with visibility down to as little as a quarter of a mile at times, it was rough, but the tide took us swiftly on to Falmouth.
We saw, on three separate occasions a strange fin in the water, moving slowly, we passed them without getting a proper look and were intrigued by what they could possibly be. The third time, we swung round to try to get a better look....

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....it was a Sunfish! Amazing, what a special sight. Apparently they eat jellyfish.

We considered going into the Helford River, which apparently is gorgeous, I was keen to explore Frenchman's Creek, but, the wind was still quite determinedly easterly, which could have resulted in a very uncomfortable night. We plumped for the Fal, good shelter and there seemed to be plenty of marinas, although when we radioed in, there was no room, Falmouth is an extremely popular destination it seems. We were able to pick up a visitor's mooring though, not too far from the shore.
It had been a long day, very satisfying to have all those tricky passages behind us, the only one remaining is Portland Bill, which we did last year, twice, without any trouble, so it won't be as scary. I was keen to go ashore and stretch my legs, Chris fancied a beer, but knew it would taste even better after a little run, so joined me. We ran up (when you start from a boat, it's always up) to Pendennis Point, lovely, what we could see of it as the fog hadn't cleared, and eerie, with the sound of the cardinal buoy out in the bay warning mariners of the danger of the Black Rock, it has a strange whining/whistly sound, haunting and distinctive.