New Year's eve - dramatic rescue from fire stricken beamer.

Around 4.30 this afternoon the crew of the beam trawler Trevessa were rescued by helicopter after she caught fire 30 miles south of the Scillies - not the way the boys would have intended spending New Year's eve!

One for the New Year - a glimpse into the crystal ball.

Once upon a time, the South or Stone quay as it was known, received a regular number of visitors in the shape of bigger boats that were loaded with blue elvin stone from Penlee Quarry......
looking into the future of Newlyn, here, passengers board the Scillonian from a temporary berth on the New Quay while.....
the Gry Maritha heads for the gaps with another load of cargo bound for the islands in a new partnership with the IOS Steamship Company and Newlyn harbour - there is much discussion over on the Islands on this emotive subject as revealed by Radio Scilly's website.

All quiet.

Rare at this time of year, a yacht moored on a pontoon berth.....
ragged dahn flags have seen better days.....
a better looking Cornish flag on the bow......
another Dutch Christmas holidaymaker this time the beamer Sea Jager is stopping over.....
lights on in the mist and ready for the off.....
the slip is boatless over the break.....
sunshine state visitor with a Kernow penchant......
along with a fan of the aptly named band, considering the current weather conditions, Wet Wet Wet.....
empty parking lots apart from the local yacht fleet.....
says it all......
stay the right side of the fence.....
this cyclist is expecting poor weather it seems, carrying a buff on the bike!

Happy Christmas from Through the Gaps in Newlyn!

" We three Kings of Orient are", well in Newlyn it's three ships of course.......
and, as ever, some wag could not help add their own extra Christmas tree decoration outside the harbour offices......
Tom surveys a tranquil Christmas Day morning in Mount's Bay.

Tom Bawcock's night, gottles of geer, gravlax and goose!

Traditionally, in this part of the world, the night before Christmas Eve is referred to as Tom Bawcock's and celebrated in and around Mousehole with fish suppers - Starry Gazey pie being the most well known incarnation and served every year in the Ship Inn, Mousehole - a huge pie crust dish with the heads of the fish therein sticking out of the pie edges. ......
Through the Gaps has given Tom's night a miss this year but nevertheless there's a fishy thing going on - made a few days before the big event, a fresh box of gravlax is on the go - fillet a side of salmon, use the mid cut and place skin side down, cover with a mixture of coarse sea salt (2tbsp), light brown sugar(1tbsp), ground white pepper(2tbsp) and a handful of fresh dill, cover with foil, place a heavy weight on top to press the fillets and turn every twelve hours - ready in a minimum of 24 but will keep for a week - especially in this weather....
one of the gems of west Penwith hidden away in the backstreets of St Just, Vivian Olds butchers....
have supplied the Christmas fayre for the festive period, open the bags and there's a diary and Christmas card with every order - nice touch! - the Christmas day meal was going to be the boned goose stuffed with the boned duck stuffed with the boned chicken - but master butcher Randall looked mortified at the thought - so the big bird may well end up being roasted individually to his slow cooking instructions - upside down for 1 1/2 hours at 150˚, turn and drain and then another 1 1/2 hours.

Going for a Dutch auction.

Just in time for Christmas there's a new shop in Newlyn packed full of gifts.....
guys during an impromptu missed this evening of vocal excellence, sometimes, if you're really lucky, you might catch them rehearsing in one of the local hostelries.....
Badcock's gallery is host to another installation work of art, this time promoting the locally based but globally active charity Shelterbox......
the harbour is full of boats at the start of the break......
though one of the floating museum pieces is up on the hard......
dramatic skies foretell the chance of sleet, snow, hail a,d sub-zero temperatures......
with the quay covered in a sheet of black ice.....
making her way in to be the last big boat to land her fish at Newlyn (overland), the Belgian flagged Dutch beamer Ora et Labora - last year she was in with bottom trawl gear on to keep working during the fuel price crisis that the beam trawl fleet so lives in fear of.

Etolie des Ondes

More information is now available with regard to the loss of the Teignmouth based crabber, Etoile des Ondes 20 miles off Cherbourg.