Cornish Dereliction

Today I headed for the Cornish West Coast with its rugged coastline created by the relentless waves of the Atlantic Ocean and the remains of its tin mining operations.

I started the day at Cape Cornwall where the Atlantic meets the English Channel, with a view to two small islands, The Brisons (extra). 

I then headed up the coast to Botallack Mine which records mining activity from 1500s, but there may have been mining here back to the Roman age or earlier.  The most iconic buildings remaining are the Crowns engine houses clinging to the foot of the cliffs (extra and background of main image)  which housed the entrance to shafts running up to 400m out under the sea. 

The foreground building in the main image is West Wheal Owles, the scene of a tragic accident in 1893 when blasting flooded the workings causing the death of 19 men and a boy. The mine was closed and the bodies were never recovered.