Edinburgh weather was the wrong label for Cornwall’s eclipse day, but the effect was the same: the temperature had reached the 30s before it plunged as the moon covered the sun. In Cornwall, people gathered on beaches, hills and viewing points, and Lisa Redfern called the scene “a magical eeriness.”
Cornwall headland eclipse
At 6pm, the beach and village began to empty, and those in the know headed up the hill toward the old granite coastguard station on the headland. Redfern, a Sennen Cove resident, had built a pinhole camera from an old Ryvita Thins box and said, “This is the best spot.”
She was there with a large group of friends and family for a picnic on the headland. Redfern said, “Let’s face it, we may not see another one.” She added, “We have to make the most of these moments.”
Matthew Robinson and Rina
Matthew Robinson came armed with a colander and spent a frustrating few minutes getting the angle right. “The colander is a bit disappointing, but there’s a lovely atmosphere here,” he said. Seven-year-old Rina had proper eclipse glasses and described the sight this way: “It’s like someone has taken a bite out of a biscuit.”
Strangers shared picnics, drinks and eclipse glasses across Cornwall as towns, villages and pubs staged special events. In Falmouth, there was an air display, while one hotel hosted an evening of sea shanties.
Mary Bendall at Carnewas
Mary Bendall positioned herself on a rock near the coastguard station with a filter over a scope and her iPhone. She had watched the total eclipse in 1999 with her daughter, who now works in physics. Bendall said, “I have just spoken to her – she’s in Spain.”
“It’s cloudy there so we may be having the best of it,” she said. Across Cornwall, members of Kernow Astronomers were posted at the National Trust site Carnewas at Bedruthan near Padstow, using telescopes fitted with filters so visitors could observe safely.
Kernow Astronomers and Cornwall
The eclipse also changed what people saw around them. The wind picked up, gulls stopped circling and landed on the water, a trio of choughs hopped around on the hillside, and swallows that had been whizzing around the thatched cottages rested for a while.
Eclipse glasses were very tricky to source in Cornwall, which pushed some viewers toward improvised gear, filters and shared equipment. How many people across Cornwall attended the eclipse-related events is not stated.
