A Cornish Summer

​Talking about the weather is boring, yet we all do it, and that’s because it’s a mass shared experience, the most commonly discussed context I’m sure we’ve all heard is “can you believe it July, yes, this weather is shocking” I myself have heard this discussed many times between strangers in shops, friends in the street etc.

​The weather is one of the biggest shared experiences we know. All the people in a certain place are all aware of the weather, at the same time. It’s just that some of our reactions to the weather are more extreme than others.

Cornwall is the warmest region in Britain. Being surrounded by water also means that clouds creep in off the sea, rise – and it inevitably rains. The recent rainy season (from April to June) has been a record breaker, yet does it really matter?

Cornwall in the rain has surreal-like quality. There’s a particular type of rain – seemingly peculiar to Cornwall – called ‘mizzle’. It’s an eerie, warm half-mist/half drizzle precipitation that swallows whole landscapes and lifts suddenly to reveal the gorgeous Cornish countryside.

Go to the beach on a rainy day, and there are still people on the beach. Go to the moors and there are still people braving the deluge. Pop into an art gallery or visit a heritage site, and people are still indulging in the experience – albeit in their galoshes.

It’s not so much a determination to enjoy Cornwall no-matter-what in the same manner of trying to enjoy a camping trip when your world resembles Atlantis. It’s the fact that Cornwall is enjoyable in the rain or even more simply put, Cornwall is cool no matter the weather.

Take Cornwall’s beaches. 34% of the people who visit Cornwall will make a trip to the beach. Yet only 4% of people will actually go in the sea. That’s an awful lot of people for who the experience of going the beach is just that, being on the beach without having to engage in any of the so-called beach activities.

When you live in Cornwall, you get used to the strange microclimate. Toasted by the Gulf Stream, Cornwall remains largely snow-free in the winter to the dismay of local schoolchildren. The summer starts around Easter and fades away conveniently the same time as British summer time forces the clock hands forward.

Then the sun. When the Cornish sun shines – it scorches as strong as any Mediterranean midday heat. Moving to Cornwall makes one realise what a great notion the practice of siesta really is.

And the rain? Well, the rain just gets you a bit wet and doesn’t matter much; there’s still plenty to do…
​
Written from a truly Cornish perspective.