Old Maps (1)

Back in the 1970's, on the opposite side of the road to Plymouth Polytechnic, was an Ordinance Survey shop. During lunchtime breaks from my studies I would occasionally wander over and look through their collection of circa 1905 25 inch to the mile maps.

The first one I bought was of the Luxulyan Valley, near St Austell. I knew the area well and in my younger days had cycled over there  a couple of times, exploring the beautiful woodlands and trying to make sense of how a majestic aqueduct, a couple of leats and a ruined waterwheel once fitted together. What purpose did they serve?

My interest in local history and old Ordinance Survey maps had been kindled, and survive to this day. I unearthed some information about the valley in a book about the china clay industry's origins and now at last, with my map, it began to make sense. If you fancy a closer look, click the maps and notice especially the viaduct (actually an aqueduct, 1st map) and the Wheelpit Mill (a waterwheel, 2nd map).

How it looked in 1968: one of the leats (great for playing Pooh Sticks) and the remains of the waterwheel

Carmears Incline in 1968. The waterwheel was used to haul wagons up here from Ponts Mill.

Two shots from 2008 - the waterwheel again, now with lots of water as the feed from the
leat had been restored, and Treffry's impressive aqueduct

Another maps that I bought was this one, again a cycling destination from my younger days. It features the delightfully named Fiddler's Green and Shepherd's Station, on the former branch line from Newquay to Perranporth.

Arguably, it's not a very interesting place – just another wayside station on a forgotten branch line, but the map fascinates me. When I arrived on my bike, all those years ago, the track had been lifted but the station buildings were still intact. I recorded the scene on my Ilford Sportsman camera, then set off down the track of the long-defunct line to Rejerrah and Treamble – the one that curves away to the left. Only later did I discover that it had become a private road to Shepherds Farm!

This is what Shepherds looks like today on Google Maps. The image looked best facing south, so the line to Treamble now curves off to the right.  Shepherds farm has grown considerably and the old station is but a memory.

By the time I crossed the road to that Ordinance Survey shop in 1971 my photos had been lost, so all I have to remind me of that adventure are my map and other folks' photos. Sigh.

Jerusalem Artichoke Gratin

They're not from Jerusalem and they're not artichokes but they are very easy to grow, so surely a worthy addition to our veg garden. What I hadn't realized before planting them is that they're in the Sunflower family, so they just grow... and grow... and grow., then a pretty little yellow flower appears at the top.

One online article I read said that they were ready for harvesting when the leaves began to die. I found myself willing them to wilt but they just kept on growing – and there's only so much waiting that a girl can take.
The time had surely come to start digging.

I chose one of the taller plants and set to work with a spade. From that one tuber, planted in the Spring, I unearthed 10 new ones, and that is by no means exceptional. A Wikipedia article states: Each root can make an additional 75 to as many as 200 tubers during a year.  For this reason, it is important to resist the gardener's natural urge to move Jerusalem Artichokes to a different part of the garden every year, rotating them along with all the other vegetables. The same Wikipedia article has this warning: Because even a small piece of tuber will grow if left in the ground the plant can ruin gardens by smothering or overshadowing nearby plants and can take over huge areas. Thankfully, our artichokes are in a small area of the garden that's bounded by concrete paths, so hopefully they'll stay where they're wanted.

So having picked them, what next? There are some nice-looking recipes for soup and purée but we decided to make a gratin. For a while now I've been thinking of opening a category on this blog for Angie's Recipes... so off we go.

1. Put a heaped deserts spoon full of plain flour in a bowl and add milk to make a thick paste.

2. Stir in a whole tub (284ml) of Elmlea Double Light. Eschewing real double cream is my one concession to Slimming World though at a thumping 700kcal (350 for each of us) it's still a diet buster. Add a heaped teaspoon of grainy mustard, followed by more milk if it's looking a bit treacly. I aim for the consistency of single cream.

3. Roughly peel the artichokes and place a few in an oven dish. Pour in some of the Elmlea mixture, then another layer of artichokes and more Elmlea. Keep adding layers until everything's in the dish, then top off with grated cheese. Parmesan would probably be perfect. I use Grana Padano from Tesco and honestly can't tell the difference. And yes, I did say that this recipe was diet buster!

4. Place in the oven at about 220°C for 20 minutes or so.

5. Eat your fill, but do remember that Jerusalem Artichokes have something in common with baked beans.  That's right... they may make you fart!

Artichoke flowers are so romantic!

Free Entry

The enlightened folk of Manx National Heritage have a splendid reciprocal arrangement with several other heritage organisations, including The National Trust, English Heritage, Cadw, Historic Scotland and (would you believe it?) the Cayman Islands.

This was a lovely surprise. Though I knew my little Cadw (Welsh Heritage) card gained me free entry to English Heritage sites, I hadn't expected to use it on the Isle of Man – but use it I did!  All these turned out to be 'free'....

The Laxey Wheel

Rushen Abbey

Castle Rushen (Castletown)

Peel Castle

The House of Manannan

Cregneash Crofting Community

Manx sheep at Cregneash

There were others that we could have visited, but these were more than enough to keep us content for a week's holiday. How much did we save?  Well here are the entry fees for the two of us:

Laxey Wheel  £16
Rushen Abbey  £16
Castle Rushen  £16
Peel Castle  £12
The House of Manannan  £20
Cregneach  £12

TOTAL £92

Cadw membership for a couple of senior citizens cost £31.50 this year, so we are nicely in profit... and will be for a couple of years to come, even without planned visits to Tintern Abbey and Chepstow Castle. Moreover, I can honestly say that I would not have wanted to miss visiting any of these, despite the mist and rain that is all too noticeable in some of my photos.

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I said in my last post that this would be the last one from the Isle of Man, but since then I've thought of at least one more. However, before I extol the delights of Peel and Niarbyl, I'll enlighten you about things closer to home.  Stand by for a tall story.