Location advice - Cornwall

tori.k

What draws you to Par? There are some nice houses especially in Tywardreath but all honesty it's a bit rough, the beach is probably the worse in Cornwall, but good if you have dogs as it's a dog beach all year, where a lot don't allow dogs between May& September. Having lived up North for a few years Par has the feeling of Redcar without the amusements.
If it's a nice community feel you want in going to throw Lostwithiel into the mix 5 miles inland from Par so still close to Par beach and also Charlestown and Fowey there is always something going on in the local community centre, has a train station and a bus service into St Austell the nearest large town.
I wouldn't bother looking out in the Clay's, housing may be cheaper to reflect the lack of amenities but unless you a Church goer you can end up quite isolated, l live in a clay village but will always be an outsider I was born Par way at Lerryn. It's not that your not made to feel welcome but there definitely a different feeling between those born to the Clay's and those that moved into the area. It's slowly changing as it becomes more of a commuter area due to the A30 links.

debtisnotme

Muttleythefrog wrote: »

Enjoy.. yeah I see some lodges pop on market for 6 figure sums! Be careful of the swans... I hear they get violent if you've got no grain to give them...but it sounds like you've already survived a trip or two..lol. If you visit the local Spar and Co-Op in the village let me know which is best for groceries...lol

Neither take a walk round the duck pond and do your shopping in the big Co-op, save yourself a few MSE pennies.

debtisnotme

tori.k wrote: »

What draws you to Par? There are some nice houses especially in Tywardreath but all honesty it's a bit rough, the beach is probably the worse in Cornwall, but good if you have dogs as it's a dog beach all year, where a lot don't allow dogs between May& September. Having lived up North for a few years Par has the feeling of Redcar without the amusements.

How very rude! I guess you're entitled to your opinion, luckily the OP is staying in Par in October and can make his own mind up about how rough it is or not. Seriously - rough? Where do you live Windsor?

Muttleythefrog

tori.k wrote: »

What draws you to Par? There are some nice houses especially in Tywardreath but all honesty it's a bit rough, the beach is probably the worse in Cornwall, but good if you have dogs as it's a dog beach all year, where a lot don't allow dogs between May& September. Having lived up North for a few years Par has the feeling of Redcar without the amusements.
If it's a nice community feel you want in going to throw Lostwithiel into the mix 5 miles inland from Par so still close to Par beach and also Charlestown and Fowey there is always something going on in the local community centre, has a train station and a bus service into St Austell the nearest large town.
I wouldn't bother looking out in the Clay's, housing may be cheaper to reflect the lack of amenities but unless you a Church goer you can end up quite isolated, l live in a clay village but will always be an outsider I was born Par way at Lerryn. It's not that your not made to feel welcome but there definitely a different feeling between those born to the Clay's and those that moved into the area. It's slowly changing as it becomes more of a commuter area due to the A30 links.

lol.. Redcar without the amusements. So not a big fan of that area huh... although born Lerryn nearby. Combination of factors is why it's gone to top of list... I'm a total outsider... no direct experience of Cornwall so have looked at the basics we want.. good rail connection... beach... nearby town but village setting. Par seems to tick a lot of boxes... including being a good base from which to experience the rest of the county and plenty good walks around and a couple big ponds..lol. To a butterfly and nature lover like me those dunes and cliff walks are enticing and I like that there's things like wildflower walks conducted or bat watches. Concerns about the beach I've noted and asked some about elsewhere... in particular whether the clay past makes for poor quality...but they generally say it's fine unlike the past when you'd "squelch" in it... and I've noted the commentaries of residents regarding dogs down there and the discussions of Friends of Par Beach. But generally there seems little concern (apart from flotsam and some irresponsible dog owners and the odd youngsters driving cars like idiots in the car park at night..lol) although it sounds away from the classical Cornish beach setting especially with port at one end which I note some just really cannot get past when reviewing the area particularly for holidays. I think it just captures a lot... rough... hmmm.. I assume you mean in terms of people rather than geography.. I guess that's the one thing hard to judge for me... bearing in mind I'm doing the reverse.. I've lived in typically the better areas in generally rough places of the north... Cornish rough to us might be quite like the suburb we live in hah... if I were to try to compare the fact our locality is approximately the size of Par and Tywardreath in population and look at respective discussions of the community it is probably a no contest with plenty more talk here about plenty worse things... crime figures seem to match that.

Definitely wouldn't rule out the likes of Lostwithiel and although unlikely we'll pop in this time around (because wife wants to go to Penzance instead!) we may well next... been some nice houses come up there over the months of study. The clays yes.. I think we've pretty much discounted... maybe a bit too isolated... definitely not church goers hah. In terms of isolation though this is the great unknown for us... because we are extremely odd... we rarely get out yet we're both very sociable people... she's used to living in big cities.. bigger than typical in Britain including perhaps London... and even the towns here in Tyne and Wear dwarf the likes of St Austell. These are the aspects it is hard to measure... we're hard to measure people... it could be one big experiment where we get to Par and feel like we've landed on the moon... but there's always a pub to gather your thoughts..lol... and that's where we will head for the gossip and a few funny looks. After all.. it sounds like the beginning of a joke.. a Mexican, Geordie and two ambulance drivers walk into a pub.... they'll wait for the punchline and I'll say.. just recording our visit on Twitter..lol

Thanks for your honest views!

tori.k

debtisnotme wrote: »

How very rude! I guess you're entitled to your opinion, luckily the OP is staying in Par in October and can make his own mind up about how rough it is or not. Seriously - rough? Where do you live Windsor?

I can say that because im out in the clay's you can't call Par a picturesque sea side town in fairness, it's a bit rough, All the money for years has been heading mostly down West.

tori.k

Muttleythefrog wrote: »

lol.. Redcar without the amusements. So not a big fan of that area huh...!

The compare was between the Imerys works on Par beach and the steelworks on the river Tees, in rough I mean the looks of the area not the people...well some of my lot live in the area still :rotfl:

Muttleythefrog

tori.k wrote: »

The compare was between the Imerys works on Par beach and the steelworks on the river Tees, in rough I mean the looks of the area not the people...well some of my lot live in the area still :rotfl:

Oh..lol... I assumed you meant people...phew. Yeah I would be a bit surprised if I found it comparably rough in looks to here hah. Probably not the quaintest by Cornish averages... but then I oddly find signs of industry quite pleasant...#maybe it's because I'm a northerner#.. the arrangements of the train lines are now well coded in my brain and even the old St Blazey station.. the one with the train turning circle and sheds... things like that fascinate me along with WW2 defences which like here the evidence still seems to reside lurking in/on cliff faces, beaches and woods. I'd be more worried if the sea rises... given I understand Tywardreath used to be on the coast and the Par Inn part of the English channel..lol... there's nothing would put me off my pint more than finding myself lost at sea.

tori.k

If your heading down West (Penzance) when you come down and like trains, The St Erth to St Ives bay line is one not to be missed.

Muttleythefrog

Well just an update for those interested in the thread. Just returned from week in Par last night... first holiday in 20 years. To my great surprise I found nothing of surprise in Par and the surrounding areas... it was very much as research suggested it would be... one of the great advantages of suffering the serious mental health problems I do is that the unexpected is rare. I am sure we will return.