Polzeath

Polzeath is a small village on the north coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is a favoured location for surfing, with waves rolling in from the Atlantic Ocean. There are lifeguards on the beach during the daytime in the season. Dolphins may sometimes be spotted and the surrounding coastline is a particularly good area for seeing many types of coastal birds including puffins and Peregrine falcons.

The main beach is totally covered on a spring high tide, indeed the car park has known to be covered by water but this only happens on a spring high tide with an extremely large tidal surge.

There are many local shops, providing everything required for the holidaymaker. Within the village are a number of pubs, cafés and restaurants. There is also a large camping site that caters for families.

On September 2, 2007, 300 surfers arrived at Polzeath beach, Cornwall to set a new world record for the highest number of surfers riding the same wave, as part of the Global Surf Challenge and part of a project called Earthwave to raise awareness about global warming). The official world record stands at 44, set by Lahinch surf school in Ireland (unofficially the highest figure is 73, held by the Kahuna Surfing Academy in South Africa). [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cornwall/6974667.stm BBC NEWS, Surfers aim to break world record] ]

History

In 1911 a Methodist chapel was built on the road towards Trebetherick at what is now "Chapel Corner". The original building was demolished in 1932 when the village street was widened, and the new village hall was opened on 15 April 1933cite book
last = Drew | first = Alan | title = The Charm of North Cornwall | publisher = Triskele publications | date = 1993 | location = Ticehurst | pages = p36 | isbn = 0 9520627 0 4.

At the beginning of the 20th Century the road through Polzeath crossed the back of the beach, negotiating the stream by means of a long ford. A footbridge, which was sometimes washed away by stormy winter tides, was provided for pedestrians. In 1934 the existing road bridge was built linking the road on either side of the beach, at the same time restricting the stream and allowing car parking on the sand at the back of the beach.

Following the track along the stream from the back of Polzeath beach you come to Shilla Mill. Built around 1590 it ceased working as a mill in 1885 and was converted into a house.

Literary associations

Polzeath was a favourite haunt of the late poet laureate, Sir John Betjeman and is celebrated in some of his verse. He is buried in the nearby St Enodoc Church, Trebetherick.

Another poet, Laurence Binyon wrote the Remembrance Day ode "" in 1914 while sitting on The Rumps, Polzeath or "Polseath" as it was then called, during World War I.

In the first of Enid Blyton's "Famous Five" novels, the eponymous children express disappointment that their holiday will not, as usual, be spent at Polzeath.

The authoress Joolz Denby lived in a caravan in Polzeath for a year while researching her novel "Borrowed Light" (ISBN 1-85242-905-4), published in England by Serpent's Tail in February 2006. The novel is largely set in Polzeath, though the town's name is changed to "Polwenna" to allow some artistic licence with locations and buildings.

The cartoonist Posy Simmonds created a fictitious place in Cornwall called Tresoddit. When the BBC made the short film "Tresoddit for Easter" in 1991, it was filmed in and around Polzeath.

=

ee also

*Trebetherick
*Wadebridge
*Pentire Point
*River Camel

External links

* [http://www.thisisnorthcornwall.com/polzeath.html About Polzeath]
* http://www.rockinfo.co.uk
* [http://www.ncdc.gov.uk/media/adobe/k/n/St%20Minver%20Ward.pdf Local government census report, 2004]
* [http://www.chycor2.co.uk/westcountryviewscornwall/towns/polzeath/polzeath.htm A collection of photographs at WestCountryViews.co.uk]
* [http://crocat.cornwall.gov.uk/dserve/dserve.exe?dsqIni=Dserve.ini&dsqApp=Archive&dsqDb=Catalog&dsqCmd=Overview.tcl&dsqSearch=((text)='polzeath') Cornwall Record Office Online Catalogue for Polzeath]

References