Greetings, fellow travellers! We have returned from a journey to the Isles of Scilly. And yes, it is indeed a very Scilly place.
The very idea that such a beautiful, almost tropical archipelago is located just off the coast of Cornwall, well, it truly borders on the absurd. The main island, St Mary's, is 2.54 square miles — and it's a Scilly island if ever there was one.
St Mary's: Densely Scilly
With a population of 1,723 utterly Scilly individuals, one might say St Mary's is 'densely' populated, with twice the average density of the Isles of Scilly as a whole.
Star Castle sits at the centre of a fortification system on the west side of St Mary's. To flummox later conspiracy theorists, its walls were built in the shape of an eight-pointed star. Star Castle was built in 1593 under the direction of Francis Godolphin — who was perhaps a dolphin god, a dolphin worshipper, or a merman with a dolphin tail, although the latter does seem implausible since it would be quite difficult to build a castle without legs.
Peninnis Head & the Lighthouse
The 14-metre metal tower lighthouse on Peninnis Head is a truly Scilly structure. The headland falls within the Isles of Scilly Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty — or AONB.
Admiral Cloudesley Shovell & the Birth of the Pocket Watch
Porthellick Cove contains a memorial marking the spot where the body of Admiral Cloudesley Shovell was washed ashore in 1707. The Admiral had insisted his ship was nowhere near the Isles of Scilly, despite entreaties from his crew. He was wrong.
After crashing into the Isles and losing many men, Britain made an unprecedented push to develop pocket watches capable of keeping accurate time — allowing future Admirals to more accurately determine their longitude at sea. Have you ever noticed that people often say they need greater latitude, but rarely greater longitude? Where was I?
Tresco Abbey Garden
Perhaps the brightest gem on the Isles of Scilly is the Tresco Abbey Garden, which boasts over 20,000 exotic plants from more than 80 countries. It's been called 'a perennial Kew without the glass'. To visit, book a room at the enticingly named Hell Bay Hotel.
Getting There
To reach Scilly by sea, take the passenger ferry from Penzance aboard the distinguished Scillonian the Third. If a boat is called the Third, it does beg the question: what happened to the first two?
If you're looking for a truly Scilly holiday, look no further.
Take a Piece of Scilly Home
Whilst you're here, check out our official Isles of Scilly, It's a Scilly Place collection — including shirts, swim shirts, and tote bags. Happy travels.
