Saltash & the Tamar Bridge

Report by Mike Hawkridge - trip Organiser

Ten club members ventured west to Saltash early on 2nd July for the club’s second outing of the summer programme. Crossing over into Cornwall on the Tamar bridge you are usually thinking of your destination beyond, and Saltash easily slips by. But it is certainly worth a visit, down by the waterfront in particular. Saltash has an interesting history too; as they say, Saltash was a borough town, when Plymouth was a furzy down....

We met up at the lovely Trackside Café on Saltash Station where we were made very welcome for the now obligatory morning coffee, tea and cake; tables had been reserved for us. Suitably fortified we headed out for some photography. Most people headed down one of the steep roads leading to the waterfront area, around 120ft below the level of the station. The weather was being very co-operative with lots of blue sky and plenty of white fluffy cumulus clouds spread liberally to give a bit of shade now and then (usually when you didn’t want it!) and to add interest to the sky.

There were plenty of photographic subjects along the waterfront ranging from interesting and talkative locals to the towering architecture of the Royal Albert railway bridge and the Tamar Crossing as well as moored up and beached boats in various conditions.

We had a super lunch at the Riverside Sizzle and then carried on, with most members deciding to walk across the Tamar Bridge to the visitor centre on the Devon side, for a different perspective, and some closer opportunities for photographing the Royal Albert railway bridge and the trains.

By mid-afternoon we were beginning to flag, and the only solution to perk us up was to go in search of ice cream – a remarkably hard commodity to track down in Saltash, requiring considerable perseverance.

Besides the photography, as usual it was the company and social aspect that made the day.

Tamar Bridge - Mike Hawkridge

The obligatory Group Shot!