A Splendidly Still Evening in Looe: Landscapes, Litigious Gulls, and Geopolitical Blunders
Looe is, under normal circumstances, famously picturesque. Lately, however, it has achieved a fresh layer of notoriety as one of the primary Beyond Paradise filming locations. For reasons that defy rational human intellect, the television show’s producers saw fit to declare that this quintessentially Cornish town is actually located in Devon. This is a geographical insult so profound to the local populace that it’s a minor miracle the show’s weekly murder count isn’t significantly higher.
The Amateur Ark-Builder’s Guide to Wembury Beach (Before the Rain Returns)
Given that the British climate treats a sunny interval with the same fleeting commitment a toddler gives to a broccoli floret, a dash to Dartmoor felt recklessly optimistic. Instead, we zipped along in our small car through a countryside that was less "rolling hills" and more "saturated sponge," bound for the nearest patch of coastline at Wembury. I have, it must be said, photographed Wembury Beach approximately four thousand times, but one does not turn one's nose up at actual, verifiable sunshine. After all, in this part of the world, there is every chance we won’t see it again until the next millennium.
From Screen to Summit: My Dartmoor Photography & Wild Camp Experience
Emerging from my "man cave" – which, at this point, more closely resembled a troglodyte's dwelling – with eyes blazing red and a spine curved like a question mark, it became abundantly clear that fresh air wasn't just a suggestion, it was a medical necessity. Hunching over a glowing screen for 48 hours straight is hardly the ideal training regimen for tackling Dartmoor. And the 1.5-mile ascent (yes, I did measure it, mostly out of a burgeoning sense of self-pity) to Great Mis Tor hammered that point home with the subtlety of a runaway train. Mercifully, about two-thirds of the way up, you encounter Little Mis Tor, a sort of granite amuse-bouche, a charming little foretaste designed to spur you on to the main course.