UKC

In this month's Crag Notes Sarah-Jane Dobner breaks into an out of season Sennen and is met by waves, wind and wet rock. The fair ground attractions are in a sombre state, yet memories of route and ride persist, reminding you of better, brighter times...but not enough to make it dry...

I love what you did here. Thanks for writing SJD.

Well, I must say I do not like the comparison of Sennen with a fairground. The images at the start of the article imply, without saying it, that Sennen Cove has a fairground / end of pier / amusement arcade atmosphere, it doesn't!

They imply that only if you are not paying attention... and if you're not paying attention it doesn't really matter as you'll forget anyway.

Nice piece.

I have to disagree, I'm really fond of Sennen and the climbing there. To me, all the fairground comparisons really jar.

I'm with the others on this Mark - I really enjoyed it too.

I have no doubt that the Sarah-Jane loves Sennen, as do I, but that's not the point - it's about a highly unsuccessful out of season visit, where the crag is very much closed (in spite of the author's greatest efforts). The fairground metaphor fits in nicely, or at least it does for me: visiting crags such as Sennen reminds me of the same fun I used to have visiting Cornwall, and fairgrounds, as a child - so many new rides and exciting experiences to be had!

That said, when the crag is wet (and/or the fairground is closed) what else can be done than to look back to those halcyon days, hope for more, and admit to yourself that today of all days (and this year of all years) - the crag is indeed closed.

Dare I say it, but this could well be my favourite Crag Note of all time for that very reason.

After reading your critique, I was all set to agree with you and let confirmation bias do its thing. But then I read the article.

Rather good, I thought.

Maybe it's just that I dislike fairgrounds! I love the elemental atmosphere at Sennen when the waves are crashing in off the Atlantic, breaking over the top of Demo Route. Sure there's no possibility of climbing but it's great just to be there. The rawness of it feels so different to the artificial cheap thrills of a fairground.

Ha, quite possibly

Ironically I think that SJD would probably agree with all this, even the part about being there (in spite of the fact it's wet) - it's just the fairground that's the stumbling block.

In non-Kernow related news, I'm looking forward to seeing the new guidebook to the Culm and Baggy as/when it's out. 

Not long now (famous last words, but...). Note half of the Culm is in Kernow!

This is fantastic (al) ! 

As much an homage to film noir

as it is to out-of-season Sennen.

And reminds us: those fairgrounds

that sell us tickets to ‘adventures’

are inevitably floss.

Adventure - like creativity - need not be

terribly dangerous, but must

be out

of the ordinary, out

-of-season, never need

tickets, and always

have a whiff

of trespass !

Ay up, Rob!  I've read this a few times now, yes, I do think it is rather good. It's essentially a poem, and I think could be easily re-formed into verses & stanzas. Although it is best that it stays masquerading as prose, as that fits the 'shady' content. It is certainly in the mode of 'literary conceit' and  that can feel jarring to some readers. However, I really like how it claims right from the start to be in the realm of 'cartoon characters', it knows it is Scooby-Doo, it is an overt melodramatic performance, tinged with comedy. And that fits too, because it references film noir, which is of course stylised in excess. The film noir reference is not just the run-down (or otherwise) funfair crime-scene trope that appears in quite a few film noirs (and which by the way also appears in Blade Runner 2049), but there is also that mention of gaberdine (1940s fabric). We know, from the outset, this is all about dressing up for fun, and is also about nostalgia. The thing about film noir is - it is actually ridiculous, but we love that postured ridiculousness and so accept and believe the dark that underlies it, we suspend our disbelief by joining in with the pantomime ... and going along for the ride !

I don't know if you saw the poem-ish comment that I left ... anyway, I do feel, whether SJD consciously knows it or not (and poets often don't!), that she has made a serious observation & comment about the notion of 'adventure' and the commodification of that notion. There's lots that I like in this piece, but for me, I really like how it is - gently and with performative panache - taking the piss ! Wouldn't it be great if we lived in a world where those that appropriate what we love were in the end foiled and left only with one reply: "And I would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for you meddling kids" ... 

I thought you might enjoy this. It certainly fits a lot within its relatively short length doesn't it!

I enjoyed your poem too, not least because I hadn't personally thought about it in that capacity. I'd been more focussed on my own associations with youth, freedom and fun, outside of the shackles of any adult expectations (i.e. I want to climb route x or grade y).

Another aspect I enjoyed was the principle of going outside just for the sake of being somewhere, in and amongst the elements. I've done this a lot on wet days, where I've walked up to a crag, even though I know it's going to be gopping, just to sit around, pay homage, and get a measure of the place. 

Agreed. After noting the title I wanted to dislike it. Reading changed that. A great piece. 

Yes, it is a fab piece! It works on different levels, is layered - and invites interpretations ...

And yes, homage to place & elements. I've been at Sennen when the waves have taken the place and made rock-climbing some ancient impossible idea - it is then just the sea & the rocks, and is awe-some in the true sense.

And even a wee gritstone boulder trickling rain-drops has a certain unclimbable simplicity that makes it shockingly basic & ancient ...

m