The picture above illustrates how thenew development has progressed sofar. To the far right are the teracotta-tiled roofs of the five hotel cottages,which can be booked for a single nightor by the week. Each one has abedroom with balcony and bathroomupstairs and a sitting room and kitchenon the ground floor, allowing guests tochoose whether they dine out or in.In the centre of the picture, the longbuilding with the slate roof is the hotel’s oldFlower Wing, which has been transformed

into four timeshare properties. Of these four,Pebble is the smallest, sleeping 2-4 people,while the other three, Seagrass, Flotsamand Driftwood sleep 6-8.To the left, the other slate roofs belong tothree other timeshare properties, Rockpooland Coral, which sleep 6-8, and Pearl whichsleeps 4-6.Just above the beach is The Ruin Cafe,which will open next year, and on the otherside of the slip is the Sailing School.From 1st May 2012, The Ruin will be openfrom breakfast through to dinner and at the

Congratulations all round!See Inside...

BRINGING THE LAST PIECE OF ENGLAND TO THE WORLD

TTHHEE TTRREESSCCOO TTIIMMEESSSUMMER 2011 “OUR VIEWS ARE CLEAR.” VOLUME 6.1

STILL FREE AND STILL MAKING SENSE OF SCILLY

New Beginnings at Old Grimsby

With a handsome mix of the familiar and the new, this April saw the opening ofThe Sea Garden Cottages at the Island Hotel. Offering a new flexibility for hotel guests and furtheropportunities for timeshare, the Sea Garden Cottages have proved very popular from the outset.

With hand-woven fabrics,original artwork and hand-painted tiles, the furnishingsand interiors of the SeaGarden Cottages are bothwelcoming and stylish.The cottages are eco-sensitive too, with underfloorheating provided by air-source heat pumps, a highdegree of insulation andwood-burners, while recycledIroco timber was used in thecottages framework.

heart of its menu will be dishes prepared inits wood-fired oven.Next year, the redevelopment of the IslandHotel continues. Four more of the one-bedroomed hotel cottages for nightly rentalwill be available, as well as seven weeklyrental cottages and two more timeshareproperties.For further details please go towww.tresco.co.uk Alternatively forinformation about the hotel cottagesplease call the Island Hotel - 01720422883 and for the Timeshare cottagesplease call Dean Whillis on 01720 424111

Page 2 Tresco Times

Tresco celebrated a very special occasionon 23rd February as Eve Cooper enjoyedher 90th birthday. The whole island turnedout for a splendid party thrown by Robertand Lucy Dorrien-Smith in Eve’s honour atthe Flying Boat Club.All islanders, from the youngest to theeldest (Eve herself!), attended to wish oneof Tresco’s most popular residents a veryHappy Birthday.The birthday girl was presented with a

garden swing seat by the Dorrien-Smithsand received over 70 birthday cards.In an exclusive interview with the TrescoTimes, Eve declared:“ I was very fortunate to have been given amost enjoyable party by Mr Robert andLucy to celebrate my 90th birthday. I wouldespecially like to thank them and also themany friends - of all ages! - for making theevening a very happy and memorablecelebration.Although “No presents” was thesuggestion, my thanks also for those gifts Iwas given and may I invite everyone tocome along for a swing on the lovelygarden seat which Mr Robert presented.”Given Eve’s youthful looks and busylifestyle, it is hard to believe that she hasachieved this milestone and we are all verymuch looking forward to the next one!

Another party, this time held at the NewInn, took place in February. This gatheringserved two distinct functions. The first wasto bid farewell to Nick Mackey, who livedand worked on Tresco for 8 years. Nickbegan his time here at the Island Hotel butwill be best known for his role as DeputyManager at the heliport.Nick left Tresco to pursue a career inplumbing, joining forces with his father inSomerset.Away from work,Nick contributed toTresco’s sporting life,as a gig rower,coxswain andcricketer. Perhaps hisgreatest achievementwas his participationin last year’s Scilly Mission. Along withJames Druce and Will Ash, Nick journeyedfrom Goodwood to Ulaan Bataar in aCitroen Saxo to raise money for the CysticFibrosis Trust.The second part of this convivial eveningwas the presentation of cheque from ScillyMission to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust. Thetotal raised by the boys was an amazing£14,624.14pThe cheque was accepted by FionaHingston, on behalf of the Cystic FibrosisTrust. Fiona congratulated them on theirefforts:

“Everyone involved with the CysticFibrosis Trust would want to thank ScillyMission for all their hard work, trials andtribulations on the Mongol Rally but also tothank all of the generous sponsors anddonors for this enormous cheque. Everysingle penny is a small step closer tofinding a cure. Thank you all very muchindeed.”

Farewell NickMackey and Hello to£14,624.14 for CFT!

Many HappyReturns Eve!

Insular Things

Eve is given some help in blowingout her candles by Emily Hobbs.

From left: Nick Mackey, JamesDruce, Will Ash, Fiona Hingston and

a very big cheque.

Following on from last year's 3 PeakChallenge success, we decided that weshould continue with new challenges andcharity events. Throughout the winter, wecame up with several "bright" ideasincluding a volcano adventure in Sicily andthe Aeolian Islands, but the practicalities ofsuch a mission were not realistic!So instead, we have looked closer to homeand come up with "Scilly on the Edge2011", a 5 island challenge, incorporatingwalking the coast paths of the 5 inhabitedislands... in one day. It is easier to say thanto do, with about 33 miles of path and thecomplexities of boating and tide toconsider.We have a team of 12 taking part andmany are practising walks on Tresco andthe other islands, to get a feel for it all.There is lots to prepare for, with simplygetting used to eating and drinking on thego being something most are not used to.We have set a date of Sunday 15th May2011, starting and finishing at the New Inn(where else?). We anticipate that we willneed most of the daylight hours availableto us, so we start at 6am, completinghopefully within 15 hours, quite possiblyless. Because we only have one boatavailable to us, we will be going at theslowest walkers pace.As far as we know, this walk has neverbeen attempted before, although for mostvisitors, much of it is walked over a week.This year’s charity is Parkinson's UK, andwe have already raised around £2000.00.Thanks to you all who have alreadydonated and also to Mark & Susie Grovesand Bryher Boat Services, who have kindlygiven their time and boats to aid us on theday.All we need now is calm, not too hotweather for the day!By the time the Tresco Times hits thedoormats, all being well, we will havecompleted the walk but you can check outthe New Inn blog on the website to seehow we got on!

Walking Scilly fromthe New Inn andback again!

Tresco’s publican RobinLawson writes...

www.tresco.co.uk

HarbourmasterHenry Birchwould like toremind

everybody...

Please take the utmost care when boating.Two points in particular:There is a strict speed limit throughout theharbour areas of 5 knots, both in New andOld Grimsby.Alcohol and sea water do not mix. If youare taking your boat out, please refrainfrom drinking alcohol!

Tresco Times Page 3

The Tresco Times is proud toannounce that the island’swebsite www.tresco.co.ukhas been recently revampedand has become rather snazzy,to say the least.

Not only has the site navigation beensimplified, with a link to the TimeshareOwners’ pages on the home page and asearch engine for the cottage availabilitybut we now have a rather fine selection ofimages of Tresco displayed in a number ofgalleries, from Beaches to the Spa.With the aim of hurling ourselves into thedazzling world of technology, Tresco’shomepage now even contains a shortvideo of the island to whet the appetite ofthe casual browser. Moreover, it is theEditor’s firm belief that it will only be amatter of time before the video’scompelling soundtrack will be forging itsway into this summer’s Hit Parade... yes,you heard it here first!

One of the observations made in the pastwas that, for a website representing one ofthe most beautiful parts of the British Isles,there were very few photographs. This iscertainly no longer the case and to celebratethis change in style, The Tresco Times wouldlike invite its readers to enter a photographycompetition.Readers are asked to send in a photographof their own that best reflects the phrase“Simply Beautiful Tresco”.Entrants are limited to one image per personand all entries should be emailed tosimplybeautiful@tresco.co.uk by 31st August2011. Printed images, unfortunately, will notbe eligible.The best 15 images will be displayed onwww.tresco.co.uk in their own gallery, whilethe winning photgrapher will receive dinnerfor four at the Flying Boat Club, including twobottles of our house wine.The winner will be announced in the AutumnTresco Times. As we will be printing the bestphotograph in the next issue, it is vital thatthe resolution is of high enough quality.

Having got ourselves a new website, itseemed only right and proper to signthe island up to Facebook, as well.You can find us as Tresco Island.The Editor has gone even further. Notcontent with publicising his vague andfacetious musings three times a year,he has discovered a means to do thisdaily. The Tresco Times now has itsvery own Twitter account.One purpose of both Facebook andTwitter is to let the world know when anew blog has been published at

www.tresco.co.ukLuminaries such as the AbbeyGardens’ Curator Mike Nelhams,Rachel Young and Chef Pete Marshallfrom the New Inn are now blogging forTresco!

Facebook,Twitterand Blogs

Simply Beautiful Tresco Photography Competition On Our New Website

Tresco Times Online.Subscribe on Emailand Save the World...

a little bit.

As part of Tresco’s aim to reduceour carbon footprint and add to ourgreen credentials - the Tresco Timeswould like to encourage its readersto subscribe to this insular organ online.

The Tresco Times is already to befound on www.tresco.co.uk fromwhere it can be downloaded, printedout or just read!

If you would like to receive theTresco Times but would prefer agreener option than our printedversion...we can remove you fromour mailing list and simply send youan email when a new issue ispublished online.Email the Tresco Times at -trescotimesonline@tresco.co.uk

Please be sure to include yourcurrent address so that we can becertain of removing your detailsfrom our Tresco Times postaldatabase.After that, all there is to do is justwait for us to ping you notificationof when the latest Tresco Times hasgone live online...and our mutualcarbon footprint has disappeared!

Summer Exhibitions4th July Anthony Garratt, David Rust and Rosemary Trestini14th July Imogen Bone, Paul Lewin and Maggie O'Brien25th July Amanda Hoskin, Neil Pinkett and Ellen Watson

August mixed collections feature Wendy McBride, John Piper,Sue Lewington, Chris Rigby, Amy Albright, Marie Mills and Gill Hickman.

Gallery Tresco

Page 4 Tresco Times

A pleasant tradition was continued thisspring, whereby the Tresco AbbeyGarden team made its annualpilgrimage to Italy.

Island Gardeners Abroad

The Abbey Gardens’ team and the Hanburys. From left - Corin Golding, John Taylor,David Hamilton, Rosie Felton, Andrew Lawson, Sir Thomas Hanbury, Carolyn Hanbury,Mike Nelhams, Rosie Barratt and Rebecca Fahy. Below - Giardini Hanbury, La Mortola.

Many years ago, an informal link wasformed between the two gardens ofTresco and Hanbury in the 19th century,when plant exchange was all the rageand garden owners swappedspecimens and ideas. The Hanburygarden in the village of La Mortola onthe French /Italian border is consideredto be one of the finest gardens in theworld.Since 1999, this link has been renewedand the Abbey Garden team have livedand worked for one week every Februaryat La Mortola, gaining experience andfresh ideas and collecting plants.The gardeners are very well looked afterby Mrs Carolyn Hanbury in her homeoverlooking the Hanbury demesne. We fillher house to bursting point, taking everybedroom in the building. Also, to feed eight

SPORTTresco and Bryher Ladies Vets are World Champions!

The Ladies’ Vets won their St Agnes raceby some four lengths, defeating over 50other gigs to take the title. The victoriouscrew members were Rosie Felton, MandyHamilton, Fiona Hingston, Michelle Oyler,Ginny Hulands and Susanna Gates. Theircoxswain was Tresco-born Ralph Handy,who now resides on St Mary’s.Winning the very first race was alwaysgoing to be a tough act to follow for therest of the Club. The Men’s Vets sensiblydidn’t have a crew this year, which gotthem off the hook - however, two Men’screws competed in the main races onSaturday and Sunday. The Ladies’ Crewwas made up up of the Vets, thoughunfortunately they lost a crew member atthe last moment. A rower from themainland stepped in valiantly to help thecrew out.Over 130 gigs took part in this year’schampionships and the standard of rowingwas higher than ever.The final places for the Club’s crews:The Men’s A Crew in the Alfie Jenkinsfinished an excellent 15th.The Men’s B Crew in the Emperor finished53rdThe Ladies’ A Crew in the Alfie Jenkinsfinished 34thWell done to all of you and a specialTresco Times “Hurrah!” to our WorldChampions - the Ladies’ Vets!

strapping gardeners three square meals aday and entertain them in the evenings isno small feat.While in residence, the gardeners makean equal split of working and visitinggardens of the region. Over the twelveyear period, many gardens have beenvisited. From as far west as Antibes andCannes in France to Genoa in Italy andeverything in between. The team havereceived invitations to some wonderful andoften private houses, with magicalcollections and landscapes.The Monte Carlo Exotic, with the finestcollection of succulents anywhere inEurope, is always a favourite to call upon.Perched on cliffs, high above Monte Carloand Monaco with tall cactus towering liketrees above the visitors.Les Cedres on Cap Ferrat is probably themost exclusive private botanic garden inthe world, with vast collections andglasshouse plants from many regions ofthe world.Our connection to all of these gardens isthrough a celebrated local plantsman,William Waterfield. William has lived on theFrench Riviera for many years and besidesmaking our appointments, he regularlyaccompanies us each season as weforage about the horticultural delights ofthe region.Many good friendships and contacts havebeen established and maintained over theyears, not least with Ursula Piacenza andher garden, Boccanegra, on the coast justoutside Ventimiglia. We can never leaveher garden without large quantities ofseeds, plants and interesting new speciesto try out back on Tresco.It is something we hope will continue formany years ..or for at least as long asMrs Hanbury can put up with us.!!!

Mike Nelhams.

From the left: Michelle Oyler, Susanna Gates, Rosie Felton, Ginny Hulands,Mandy Hamilton and Fiona Hingston.

The 2011 Pilot Gig World Championships began in some style for Trescoand Bryher Gig Club with our Ladies Veterans Crew storming to an

outstanding win in the first race of the weekend.

Tresco Times Page 5

THE AMERICAN BITTERNIN CAPTIVITY.

By Innis Dorrien-Smith.

I kept an American bittern in an aviary atTresco for six years, from 1903 to 1909.The bird was caught in the island ofBryher, the most westerly of theseislands, and was picked up by one of theinhabitants in an exhausted condition. Astrong south-east wind had been blowinghere for some days, but in spite of that, ithad struggled on to land from its longjourney across the Atlantic from America.No wonder it was exhausted after a flightof 3000 miles !Knowing I had various tame birds, theman who found it sent over to let meknow, thinking it must be one of my birdsthat had escaped, and soon it arrived in abasket, having done its best to peck outthe eye of the rescuer.

The difficulty was to find food for it, therebeing no fish to be had owing to therough weather. We tried mealworms andsnails with no effect, finally limpets off therocks, and these it ate with joy, and thensome small conger eels were caught for itat low tide, also fresh water eels in thepools, and then it began to recover itsstrength. On this food and also tench,caught in the fresh-water pool, it thrivedfor six years, with occasional mice andrats. It became very tame after its longstarvation and remained so always.Limpets were only given it when otherfish were not forthcoming, as it wouldonly eat them when there was nothingelse for it. It had the most extraordinarylong thin tongue, which it stuck out like along hat pin when it was hungry, and alsomade a strange croaking noise, whichseemed to be its only sound, and neverthe booming noise of the common bittern.The American bittern is a smaller birdthan the common bittern and a more

chocolate colour on its back, with a longdark patch on each side of its neck. It hada wonderful habit of standing as if it wasstuffed, with its eyes fixed as ifcontemplating making a dart at one'sown; indeed it did one day at the boy whofed it, but luckily without hurting him. Italso had a most sedate walk, picking upits feet very carefully at each step, and,like the common bittern, had a wonderfulpower of elongating its neck like atelescope and then hunching itsshoulders and looking as if it had no neckat all. It died the death so many birdsseem to die, eating heartily but gettingthinner and thinner, till at last they dropoff.I was very sorry indeed to lose him as hewas such a curiosity and a bird with muchcharacter. He is now stuffed and in aglass case, but he looks so natural Iexpect to hear his croak and see his longtongue come out asking for food.One day he had escaped from the aviaryhe was kept in, the door having beensomehow left unfastened, a tremendoushue and cry took place as soon as theempty aviary was discovered ; the birdnot being pinioned nor its feathers cut,but having been in captivity for sometime, it could not fly well. My brotherrushed for a gun, but I was determined tocatch it alive somehow, and as itattempted to rise at the edge of the freshwater pool I just managed to get alanding net over its head before it got outof reach and took it safely back to its oldhome.I found they had an American bittern atthe Zoological Gardens, which oddlyenough had been caught about the sametime, but a long way from here, downnear the Azores. It was caught, Iunderstand, on a passing steamer.Possibly it left America when mine did, asit was strange they should haveappeared so far from their home in awesterly direction at about the same time.

THE DORRIEN-SMITH AUNTS.The second in a series of articles edited by Tresco-born Sam Llewellyn about his great-aunts, the five daughters of Thomas Algernon Dorrien-Smith.

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Left - Innes Dorrien-Smith - wouldn’t sayboo to a goose.

Right - OnceBittern...thefeathered refugeecan now be found inthe Isles of ScillyMuseum.

The Tresco Herd have had a busy fewweeks recently, as has Farmer PaulChristopher and his son Ross. Withmore cattle than ever, around 30 calveshave been born this season on Tresco’sfarm. Of all these calves, one in particularseems to have become something of afavourite with Paul and Ross.“A few weeks ago we had a terribleproblem with one cow in labour. The calfwas stuck and the delivery was a realstruggle. It took that long that we thoughtthe calf wouldn’t make it. When she wasfinally born, she was hardly breathing andwe had to work really hard to get her lungsworking.” explained Ross, pictured abovewith the calf and its mother. “Eventually thecalf started to breathe easily. As it had allbeen a bit touch and go, we decided to callher Miracle.”Miracle is clearly very appreciative of herburly midwives and now, whenever Pauland Ross go into the field, they arefollowed around by the young calf.“It’s quite strange really - normally youwouldn’t get near a calf but she comesright up to us and lets us stroke her. Evenher mother doesn’t seem to mind! This willprobably change as she gets a bit olderbut for now it’s rather nice!”Those of a cynical frame of mind may bewondering about Miracle’s future...her sexaugurs well for a long and fulfilling life onTresco.

Tresco’svery ownMiracle

Page 6 Tresco Times

TRESCO TIMESOUR VIEWS ARE CLEAR

EDITORIAL

Editor: Alasdair MooreTresco Times, Tresco,Isles of Scilly. TR24 0QQt:01720 422849f:01720 422807editor@tresco.co.ukwww.tresco.co.uk

LETTERSJust a single, long letter this issue but it isone that had the Editor smiling long afterhe finished reading it.The fine collection of artwork at the IslandHotel has long been admired by itsclientele but it seems that one guestformed a very particular attachment toone of the paintings. The Editor is mostgrateful to Mr Yardy for his letter.

A picture of modestyat the Island HotelDear Sir,I was born before the war, evacuatedduring the Blitz and again for the flyingbombs. When peace came I spent aholiday at Porthcurno, where my uncleworked at the wireless station. The firstthrill was the journey on the CornishRiviera Express. Playing on the beach, Iregularly saw the Scillonian and learnedthat it plied its way between Penzance andthe Isles of Scilly. As a little boy, an islandconjured up thoughts of magic beyond mywildest dreams.I married Pat in 1959, we honeymooned inNewquay and subsequently visited variousparts of Cornwall. After our children grewup, we started to go on holiday for ourwedding anniversaries, often abroad, andalways somewhere different. In 2002, (our43rd), Pat said “Where shall we go thisyear?” I crept outside, phoned the IslandHotel, and within 5 minutes had bookedour trip complete with the helicopter flights.Well done their staff!The story that follows is 100% true andhas not been embellished over the years. Idocumented the salient points shortly afterour return, and they have been sitting onmy computer ever since.A sincere thank-you for one of manywonderful anniversary holidays.Yours Sincerely.David Yardy.

The Night of May 16th 2002Our 43rd Wedding Anniversary.I awoke with a pressing need to visit thebathroom. Our room had the same layoutas our home; dressing area first right, andbathroom right again. I sleep on the rightso I slipped out without disturbing Pat, notneeding a light, on auto-pilot, I had done itbefore. I stepped into the bathroom andheard a loud metallic thud, - I was outsidethe room! That was bad enough but I hadno clothes on! I had discarded my pyjamasseveral nights earlier as I was too hotunder the thick duvet.I obviously didn’t have a key and my wifewas asleep. We were in the middle of athree bungalow complex, so I could nothammer too loudly on the door, as it musthave been 2 or 3 a.m.

Much is made these days of Health &Safety. “The world’s gone mad!” is the cry,as children are arrested for playing conkersand we are warned that bags of almondsmay contain traces of nuts. Many of thecomplaints against H&S are somewhathysterical but the Tresco Times has proofthat there are times when following thecorrect H&S procedure is really quitedangerous.Earlier this year, a Tresco coastguard wascalled out to collect an old, unused distressflare which had washed up on the shoreline.The sodden flare was dumped in a bucket ofwater to be disposed of later. Word camefrom the mainland Coastguard offices:Health & Safety demanded that the flarecould only be dealt with by trainedprofessionals.A Royal Navy bomb disposal team was dulydispatched to Tresco. A range of other, out-of-date distress flares from the island werecollected for the R.N. to make safe. Alongwith the island’s Coastguard team, theBomb Squad went out to Pentle Bay,strapped a bundle of flares to someexplosives and buried them in the sand. Animpressive explosion was followed swiftly bycries of “Fire! Fire!” An errant scrap of flarehad fizzed a few feet out of the hole andlanded in the banks above the beach,setting the marram grass alight. A steadyeasterly fanned the flames and, in seconds,the dunes were ablaze.By the time the fire was out, nearly an acreof marram grass had gone up in smoke andfire-fighters from three islands, Tresco,Bryher and St Mary’s, were on the scene.Meanwhile, the bomb squad had quietlyreturned to their helicopter and flown back tothe mainland.The Tresco Times is in no doubt that theMarine and Coastguard Agency, the RoyalNavy, the Isles of Scilly Fire and RescueService and Tresco Estate are all gratifiedthat the correct Health & Safety procedurefor the disposal of a single distress flare hadbeen observed.

Not content with being Tresco’s most senior citizen and,most likely, the most senior churchwarden in the BritishIsles, nonagenarian Eve Cooper is leading the fundraising

activities for our local church.

The first problem was to cover myconfusion. I spied a fire extinguisher with ahose dangling in front, but decided it wastoo heavy to carry around. On the smallveranda was a picture that fortunately wasnot fixed to the wall, so covering mydignity, I proceeded to reception to borrowa spare key. Passing the low wall aroundthe garden that backed onto the Frenchwindows of the bedroom, I thought I couldcreep up the garden and tap on thewindow. Discretion suggested that thatwould not be a good idea, it could havefrightened Pat to death.I carried on to reception and was slightlyrelieved to find no one there. I picked up acushion to cover my rear. On reflection Ishould have taken two and left the weightypicture, as my shoulder ached for agesafterwards.I could now ring Pat...except that of courseI couldn’t as I did not have the inter roomaccess code, and one doesn’t go to bedwith one’s glasses on! I returned to ourroom to try again, but still to no avail.Getting desperate I told myself to keepcalm and analyse the problem for asolution.I returned to reception and found themanager’s office and then to my relief Isaw a rack with hundreds of keys.However this was not much use withoutmy glasses, I cannot read in the daywithout them. Every avenue turned into acul-de-sac. While all this stress was goingon I had, at least, temporarily forgotten thereason for getting up anyway; nature iskind like that.With the stars shining overhead I returnedonce more, cold and desperate, to ourroom... via a flowerbed. Hammering againon the door, I eventually woke my wife.In the dark she got up to investigate,carefully creeping round the bed, so as notto wake her “sleeping husband”. Shejustifiably thought that, if she had wokenme to say someone was knocking on ourdoor, I would have told her not to be sostupid. ”Who’s that?” she whisperedthrough the door. “It’s me - David!”, camemy plaintive cry,” I’ve been out here forthree hours...” At least, that’s what itseemed like at the time. She let me in andsaid, “You’re frozen”, which of course wastrue. At which point it all became hilariouslyfunny.In the morning, on the way to breakfast,Pat was anxious that the hotel might haveCCTV, while I noticed that the flowergarden, which I had wisely decided notclimb over, was full of cacti.Having re-hung the picture, I replaced thecushion in reception under the quizzicaleyes of the staff, who then heard theexplanation, causing much mirth as thestory circulated.

Recently, Eve popped into the Editor’soffice to deliver this appeal:Tresco’s St Nicholas’ Church is one of thesix Church of England churches in theIsles of Scilly that make up our localParish, cared for by the Chaplain of theIsles, the Revd. Canon Peter Walker,resident on St Mary’s. Everybody iswelcome to share in the Services at StNicholas’, to look around or to visit for atime of quiet reflection.

St Nicholas’ Church:An Appeal from the Churchwarden

Tresco Times Page 7

The Isles of Scilly are renowned fortheir wealth of archaeological sites,many of which have been known sincethe 18th century, or even earlier.However, new discoveries are still comingto light and the most important of thesewas the Iron Age burial found at HillsideFarm on Bryher in 1999. Here, in about100BC, a single individual was buried withan iron sword in a bronze scabbard, abronze mirror, a bronze brooch and othersmall metal items. This is the only Iron Ageburial in Europe where a sword and a

mirror have beenfound in thesame grave.They are now ondisplay in theIsles of ScillyMuseum on StMary’s.Last winter sawtwo further findson Bryher which,although not as

striking as that of twelve years ago, stillprovide valuable and interestinginformation about the early inhabitants ofScilly.There are several current building projectson Bryher and each of them has beensubject to archaeological monitoring, acondition imposed as part of the planningprocess because of the density ofarchaeological sites in the islands. OnSamson Hill, at the southern end of Bryher,where a derelict building has beendemolished and a new one constructed,several pieces of briquetage were found.Briquetage is coarse, orange or red potteryused in the production of salt and bothevaporating pans and the pillars on whichthey were supported are known. Theearliest examples date to the Bronze Age(c2000BC to 800BC) and it was used until

mediaeval times.Briquetage is an unusual discovery inScilly, with only one other recordedexample, from Tresco. The expert who hasexamined it believes it may be Bronze Ageor Romano-British (c43AD to 400AD).A very different discovery was made at thesite of the new Multi-Use Games Area(MUGA) near the Hell Bay Hotel. Here,several large boulders were found and itappears that they have rolled down fromthe rock outcrops on the slope of Timmy’sHill, to the south. Rather than being spreadat random across the site, as would beexpected if they had arrived there solely bynatural forces, some of the bouldersappeared to have been arranged.A single, very large, granite boulder,weathered on one face, was surroundedby many smaller granite stones andamongst these were several pieces ofquartz, other pebbles of different colours,some of which were water-worn, and anunworked piece of flint. Three otherboulders lay in a straight line from thelargest one and this line was oriented duenorth-south. Quartz pebbles were foundclose to most of the boulders, in muchgreater abundance than across the rest ofthe site.It is difficult to date this but theoccurrence of the boulders at a depth ofabout 0.5m below the present ground levelsuggests a considerable timespan duringwhich they either became covered byhillwash, or sank through the action ofearthworms, or a combination of the two.The positioning of smaller stones around alarge boulder may be similar to theDartmoor tor cairns, dated to the BronzeAge, where a kerb of stones surrounds anatural outcrop. These may have beenassociated with burials or, possibly, havebeen for astronomical purposes. A possibleexample of a tor cairn has been identifiedon Samson Hill, Bryher. The purpose of the

Rolling Stones and a Salty Past Discovered on Bryher.There may bemore delicatearchaeologicaltools than thetoe of a boot butfor TimesharerHugh Edwards itproved to bemore thanadequate.Earlier this year,while strollingalong PentleBay at low tide, Mr Edwards gave aconsidered yet probing kick to aninteresting-looking lump of stuff in thesand. In doing so, he unearthed a rathersplendid pewter tankard, festooned withseaweed.Mr Edwards and his wife Cathy made theirway to the Island Office with his impressivefind. The Editor was called and, afterovercoming his initial disappointment thatthe tankard had no beer in it, wasdelighted to photograph the moment.As with all such finds, the tankard washanded over to the Isles of Scilly Museumon St Mary’s, who were most grateful tothe Edwards for their thoughtfulness. Thetankard is believed to date from thenineteenth century but further research bymuseum staff will be required before amore detailed assessment can be given.Further details about the museum can befound at www.iosmuseum.org

Back In Timesharer

arrangement of stones at the MUGA site,and of the line of boulders, remainsobscure but astronomical use is, again, apossibility.Both of these recent discoveries on Bryherwere made by local archaeologistKatharine Sawyer.Enjoy a four night break at Hell Bay inj thecompany of the islands’ leadingarchaeologist and guide KatharineSawyer. Not only will you be able to enjoythe elegant surroundings and 3 AA Rosettecuisine of Hell Bay but you will bepersonally guided around the majorarchaeological sights of Scilly byKatharine, who will bring the islands’extraordinary past to life.Details of Hell Bay’s archaeologicalholiday 15 to 19 September 2011Visits to archaeological sites on StMartin’s, St Mary’s, Samson and Tresco(including Abbey Garden)Cost: £750 including helicopter, 4 nights’DBB, boat trips, entrance charges, eveningslide show, holiday insurance.Contact Katharine on 01720 423326 orHell Bay (01720) 422947www.hellbay.co.uk

Unfortunately, time is taking its toll on thechurch, both outside and in. We are nowaiming to raise funds to contribute to theestimated £220,000 required for work dueto take place in 2012. Included in theprogramme of works is the partial re-slating of the roof, attention to the walls tohelp eliminate damp problems, repair andcleaning of the Sanctuary alabaster andthe renewal of some joists and floorboards.This is a daunting amount to consider and

it is an extremely difficult time to ask forfinancial help but, as well as local efforts,we are appealing to those who love Tresco- many of whom attend Services andvolunteer as organists and readers - foranything that they may be able to offer.A letter of appeal will be given to manyvisitors on Tresco but if you are able tomake a donation and wish to send acheque from the mainland, please could itbe made payable to ‘PCC of the Isles of

Scilly’ (please write ‘St Nicholas’ Church’on the back of the cheque). Any donationsshould be sent to Eve Cooper, 5 Bay Row,Isles of Scilly TR24 0PY,Gift Aid envelopes, which increase thevalue of any donation by 25%, can besupplied. Please call 01720 422818.Any donation will be very greatlyappreciated.

The Bronze Age sword and mirror discovered on Bryher in 1999by local farmer, Paul Jenkins.

Fascinating IndulgenceUncover the history of Scilly foryourself at Hell Bay

Page 8 Tresco Times

The Tresco Times Heritage andTransport Correspondent takes usback to the long hot summers ofthe 1940s and an important part ofEstate work from days gone by.

In the Pool withEddie Birch

In the 1940s, some of the summers werevery dry and the Pool on Tresco wouldnearly dry out. This was the time whensome of the men who worked for TrescoEstate would go into the Pool and cut therushes to make fencing.They would wear rubber boots and theywould wrap sacking around their legs tostop the reed stubble from cutting theirlegs.

Below: Crib Time - the rush-cutters take abreather. Eddie’s father, Arthur Birch, ison the far left, sporting a fine pair ofsacking gaiters.

Summer has arrived on the FortunateIsles and to experience the season onTresco, the “jewel” in the islands’crown, is indeed something special!Early mornings (and I mean early!) are aMUST, so no lazy lie-ins. Stroll down tothe Great Pool and soak up the birdsounds – listen to the noisyOystercatchers (I love the old-fashionedname “Sea Pie”) on New Grimsby beachparading around each other, some stilltrying to attract a partner, whilst otherslare already showing off their new bornchicks. Some late migrant Greenshankmay well still be hanging around the Pool,their fluting calls instantly recognisable. Ifyou are lucky, you might catch sight of apair of Ringed Plovers brilliantlycamouflaged on the shingle, shieldingtheir eggs from those marauding GreatBlack-backed Gulls. Offshore, the strident“kik-kik-keearr” of the Common Terns canbe heard, their wonderful languid flightpunctuated by the swift dive to catch afish.Quietly sitting in the hide, a flock ofGadwall fly in, showing off the diagnosticwhite secondary wing bar and hearingtheir distinctive “agh” call, quite differentfrom the Mallard’s “quack”. Over on thewater’s edge, below Simpson’s Field,several Little Egrets are feeding in theshallow water, with one “creamier” lookingindividual rushing around and swoopingits bill from side to side – Spoonbill.Then I hear the sound of Summer, a

Cuckoo calling from the pines, havingalready laid its eggs in some poorunsuspecting Reed Warbler’s nest.Overhead Barn Swallows and HouseMartins are hawking for insects – willthere be a late Red-rumped Swallowamongst perhaps? Suddenlypandemonium amongst the hirundines asa Hobby dashes through the flock with, Iam afraid, one less Barn Swallow. Talkingof breakfast, time to stroll back to the NewInn but not before hearing the sound ofsomething like two stones being knockedtogether – up pops the Stonechat on thegorse, just as depicted in the originalObserver Book of Birds which I stillproudly own, having paid five shillings allthose years ago. Have you still got yours?After breakfast, a walk up to Old GrimsbyHarbour for a boat trip around the EasternIsles and Northern Rocks, not beforecatching a glimpse of a white rump as theNorthern Wheatear flits over the stonewall into the field beyond. It’s a perfectday for a “Circular” cruise on theFirethorn. Visitors coming to Scilly mostlywant to see just ONE bird only, or money

back! Will we be lucky today I askmyself? Approaching the majestic Men-a-vaur rock, a flock of Razorbills skimsacross the port side of the boat, closelyfollowed by several Fulmars gliding lowover the water.Changing course, we cruise over to theNorthern Rocks, the odd Gannet or twovisible low over the waves in the distance.As we approach Mincarlo, moreRazorbills are evident along with severalGuillemots and Kittiwakes. But there, onthe grassy slope, half way up, just belowthe overhanging crag, the bird we all wantto see – a Puffin. Suddenly it takes offwith its characteristic whirring flight,circles around the boat and lands on thewater next to a group of ten more of theseendearing and almost comical individuals.As they bob around on the water, we cannow all see the beautiful multi-colouredbill that we know so well. Missionaccomplished!So what will the Autumn bring in terms ofmigrant birds I wonder?If you would like to join David on aBirdwatching & Wildlife Tour thisSeptember/October, he will be hostingtwo five night breaks:

24th-29th Sept at the New Inn, Tresco.29th Sept - 4th Oct at Hell Bay,

Bryher.For full details of prices and bookings

please contact:David Rosair, Island Ventures

Tel: 01227 793501Email: drosair@aol.comwww.islandventures.co.uk

www.tresco.co.ukwww.hellbay.co.uk

Tresco’s BirdmanDavid Rosair writes...

The rushes would be cut into bundles andthe men would tie them up with splitcordyline leaves, which don’t rot.The bundles of rushes were taken to thefields by horse and cart to be unloaded andput into piles.For the fencing, there were two sets of wirelines: two lines at the top and two at thebottom. The rushes were putin-between the wires and tied every so oftento keep them tight. Once in place, therushes would be cut level and pallisadingput on top to keep the wind off the flowers.Long Grounds is the name of a field close toReading Room Cottage. This field neededabout 150 bundles of rushes for its fence.Even when there isn’t much water, the Poolcan be a bit of a hazard. In the 1980s wehad a dry summer, during which a tractorwas taken into the Pool with a Swipe to tidyup the rushes. Unfortunately the tractor gotstuck in the mud, so another tractor wassent into the Pool to tow it out. The secondtractor got stuck as well. The drivers askedme to go and pull them out with my tractor. Isaid no because I needed it for the morningtransport. So the two tractors were left inthe Pool overnight and come the next

morning they had sunk down even further.In the end, the monkey winch wasbrought down from the Gardens and ittook about two hours to get the tractorsout.The Pool mud is deep in parts. Peoplehave tried to walk through the Pool andgot stuck waist deep halfway across.Inthe winter, the Pool would floodSimpson’s Field and if we had to pickflowers there, we would have to leaveabout 20 yards as it would be too soft towalk on.

Tresco Times Page 9

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Page 10 Tresco Times

Rainbow House is a family-owned beachfront holiday home on the island ofBarbados. Considered a gem amongst the south coast villas, it is situated on

a superb white sand beach looking out onto aquamarine waters.

Rainbow House has 4 air-conditioned bedrooms, each with an en-suite bathroom.There is an elegant veranda for dining, with seating for 10 people, as well as a large

open terrace with a gas grill/barbecue.

For further details please call: 01720 422849or visit www.tresco.co.uk/accommodation

Are there times when your week onTresco seems to fly past, leaving youwishing for just a few more days

on Scilly?Tresco would like to offer you the

opportunity of extending your stay hereby three days for the price of two.

Make a new booking at either the New Inn,Island Hotel or Hell Bay on Bryher forthree nights, either at the beginning orend of your timeshare holiday, and enjoy

one of those nights on us.

For further details please call:The New Inn - (01720) 422844

The Island Hotel - (01720) 422883Hell Bay, Bryher - (01720) 422947

or visit www.tresco.co.uk

Adam and Michael Dorrien Smith invite you to visittheir new Town House Hotel in Clifton, Bristol.

Opening in July 2011.

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Tresco Times Page 11

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