Good Friday and another great turnout for the annual model boat sailing on Consols Pond, at the top of St Ives, which dates back nearly 100 years.
Guiding some of the boats away from the reeds
Families bring along model boats, from faithful reproductions of local styles like Jumbos to steamships, yachts to speedboats. All are welcome at this gathering. There are usually home-made vessels, too.
Mayor Johnnie Wells with Denis Preece (left) and Thomas Gwyn Preece and a boat discovered recently by Thomas’s father, Shaun, at an auction
St Ives mayor Johnnie Wells was there, and the occasion is now managed by the Friends of Consols Pond, a group of volunteers and adjacent landowners who make sure the water is weed free and navigable for the model boats.
More than 100 years ago, model boats were sailed in a sea pool between Smeaton’s Pier and Pedn Olva in St Ives Harbour. But gradually that pool disappeared, which led to the move to Consols.
Joby Godolphin and his children, with their late grandfather’s boat. Photograph: Nicole Tesseyman. Other photographs: Darren Norbury
The Friends of Consols Pond are constantly fundraising towards the upkeep of the pool. Find out more here.
