Secret Spots, Semi Secret Spots and the Abyss of Mainstream.

There is a spot in West Cornwall, that I used to check on every swell of size. It would break less than 6 times a year and was a secret. I shall call it "Legumes". It has a back drop that is hard to match, stunning and iconic.I have some great photos but I cannot post them.

 Last Saturday a strong swell lit up the spot. I arrived  mid morning still shaking off the Jet Lag, ecstatic it was breaking on my first full day back in the county. The track down is a wee bitof hassle especially after rain but after navigating it, I was dumb struck. Over 10 cars and as many in the water, girlfriends on the rise and dog walkers drawn to it and it preceeded to grow with people and then someone lit a BBQ. The local field, turned into a car park.

 I should say that I have heard of people in Newquay talking of the spot before, but its a long way and I figured they wouldn't know the formula that well, yet Saturday's swell was an easy one to call for Legumes.

The wave is not the best wave in the area, it does not break top to bottom it can be pretty fat, but it also has its moments. The few times I have surfed it was more like a celebration of it. It almost felt like a friend, the time, pertol and dreams I shared with the Pumpkin trying to score it. Before I left Cornwall after breaking up with my girlfriend during all the rows, I had slept down there after storming out in the early hours of the morning in winter and arisen to find it going off, I surfed it all day and only saw two other people all day, it was a special day thatI shall not forget.

Now it seems it cannot be called a secret spot, rather it is a semi secret spot, it is on the slippery slope to being named in a "Stormriders" guide or "Wavefinders" and after the farmer gets annoyed with the traffic, damage to his land, litter etc, he'll turn his field into a car park and they'll be a ticket machine.....surely not, it doesn't work often enough.I guess I'm just sad about it.

 And then I got the arse...I'm trying not to so much these days. A friend of a friend had posted pictures on facebook of it. I sent a polite message asking him to withdraw them, which he did and the whole interaction was very civil, polite and more than anything english. Having just returned from a year in Peru, I have reflected on how this could not have taken place anywhere else only here.(I have changed names of the writer and the spot)


Mark  February 11 at 6:29pm Report



alright Ed,
 i just got a message from im about the Legumes pics.sorry if ive pissed anyone off- i didnt even think about other people other than my friends(who all know about the place)seeing the pics.it is pretty busy down there already i guess without broadcasting it to the world.hope you managed to score somewhere on the w end.


mark

 Edward Lockyer February 12 at 8:00am


I know what you mean, facebook gives the illusion of sharing with people you know but...I don't think I know you, but because a mutual friend comments then I get to see it and hence it goes on.

I was amazed how many people were at Legumes last weekend, I was a bit saddened. I guess the swell was well predicted for a long time and so everyone trapsed down.

I'm no "local" but when I first moved here,it was like a mythical rumour Legumes it just doesn't happen that often and very few people surf it when it did....the problem is that a photograph of it makes it the easiest spot in the world to work out where it is. I guess its moving into the semi secret spot class, which means it will be common knowledge soon enough....just want to slow that process down not speed it up. There are only a few Penwithian gems left and we'dlike to keep onto them as long as possible.


Thanks for the email and taking the pictures off.


Ed

I guess more and more people love the sport I do and surfers love to travel and so.....the spots get found and increase in numbers, after all I can't remember how I found out but someone surely pointed me in the right direction, may be the shouldn't have?!?!