Mother Ivey's Bay

RNLI Rescue off Trevose Head

2009-09-22T10:41:00.004+01:00

The Padstow lifeboat was called out to the aid of a local vessel on Friday 18th September. The Padstow-based fishing boat “Northern Lights” suffered sudden rudder failure when about 20 miles north of Trevose Head.

The lifeboat “Spirit of Padstow” launched at 1.50pm and quickly made its way to the scene where the volunteer crew were able to attach a tow and bring the stricken vessel safely in to Padstow Harbour.

With Padstow still very much a community that uses the Sea, the town is very supportive of their local lifeboat and its crew. Occasions where the lifeboat is able to assist members of the town’s fishing community are fortunately rare but when they occur only serve to strengthen the bond and sense of pride.

Return of Popular Local

2009-09-07T11:20:00.004+01:00

We can expect to see one of the Padstow area's best-known residents back on our screens shortly according to the ITV Website. The 4th series of Doc Martin should not be too long in appearing which will come as a relief to the many fans of the show.

"Port Wen" is quite close to Mother Ivey's Bay though for most of the year it masquerades as Port Isaac! Doc Martin is just one of many popular TV series filmed in Cornwall which has an enviable film and TV pedigree now supported by one of the leading University media departments based at Tremough, Falmouth.

TV series made in Cornwall include, of course, Poldark and Wycliffe whilst a great deal of Hornblower series 3 was also filmed in local waters and around the county. The county's many country houses, like Pencarrow and Lanhydrock are always in demand for period films and dramas.

St Mawes on the south coast, like Port Isaac, has become associated with a specific series, in this case the BBC's "Wild West" staring Dawn French.

What's On Locally in September?

2009-08-26T10:47:00.005+01:00

Well the Summer holidays might be drawing to a close but there remain plenty of things to do locally throughout September for those guests who choose this slightly quieter time to visit the park here at Mother Iveys Bay.

Cornwall’s Crealey is ensuring that the end of Summer Holidays doesn’t mark the end of fun days out with their “Autumn Fest and Scarecrow Convention” which runs throughout September and includes a celebration of Cornwall’s food and drink as well as a range of other exciting things.

Sept 19^th – 20^th is “Grandparents Weekend” with free tea or coffee with cake for all visiting Grandparents. All members of the Emergency services and their families receive an admission discount at Cornwall’s Crealey throughout September.

The Bodmin and Wenford steam railway offers music and mystery during September with their popular Steam, Beer & Jazz evening specials (5^th and 19^th September) and their “Murder Mystery” evenings which include a train journey, Pasty supper and, of course, a bit of sleuthing to unravel a “whodunit”. Trains depart from Bodmin General station at 7pm. Advance ticket booking essential.

Murder Mystery dates are as follows: 1^st, 8^th, 15^th & 22^nd September.

Eden Project moves into “harvest” mode in September as it celebrates the Global Garden Harvest. Many useful events and demonstrations on how best to preserve crops and what to do with your own bumper harvest.

Evolution of a Cornish Clay Pit is an exhibition of work by artist Anthony Eyton. His artwork charts the "evolution" of the Eden Project from an empty clay pit to the stunning attraction it is today. The exhibition is included in the price of a standard ticket and runs until next year.

Padstow Lifeboat launches to aid swimmers

2009-08-18T13:47:00.004+01:00

Padstow’s RNLI Tamar class lifeboat ‘Spirit of Padstow’ launched at 20.28pm on the 15th of August to the aid of swimmers off Treyarnon Bay.

Four swimmers were reported to be in difficulties off Treyarnon Bay beach. The lifeboat launched and made its way to the scene making ready the y-boat to be deployed.

On arrival at the scene the lifeboat was stood down when the swimmers were helped ashore by other members of the public.

The Padstow lifeboat station has been in operation since 1827 though a brand new boathouse was constructed to accommodate the new "Tamar Class" lifeboat which is clearly visible from Mother Ivey's Bay.

A necessary job!

2009-08-12T09:40:00.006+01:00

One of the start-of season jobs that go on behind the scenes at Mother Ivey's Bay include preparing the toilet facilities for our campers on the "Meadows" field. "Meadows" is a popular section of the park open to campers between 10th July and Sept 6th (2009 High Season dates).

Facilities on the Meadows include a play area and football pitch, for our younger more active visitors. The field is adjacent to an area set aside a s a nature reserve and we respectfully ask campers to ensure their dogs do not foul this area.

For details about tariff and booking for "Meadows" follow link.

Better Recycling Facilities

2009-07-27T10:24:00.003+01:00

Following the overwhelming positive response from our customers to the introduction of recycling facilities at Mother Ivey’s in 2007, recycling facilities at the holiday park have been further improved and extended for 2009.

Mother Ivey's Bay has recently taken delivery of a complete range of recycling bins, allowing customers to recycle their glass, tins, paper, cardboard, plastic and garden waste at any of our ten waste collection areas around the Park. Additionally, there is a a battery recycling point in reception for old torch batteries.

Park owner Patrick Langmaid said: "our customers encouraged us to introduce recycling and having now converted every waste collection area on Park into a recycling facility we have succeeded in reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill by around one-third, which is a great start. Our target now is to send one-half of all our waste for recycling and we are sure we will achieve this by the end of 2010 given all the goodwill from customers."

The improved recycle bin facilities mark a further step in what is an ongoing process at Mother Ivey's Bay to continually reduce the environmental impact of the park to create an environmentally sustainable business.

2009 Bellamy Award Inspection

2009-07-20T09:39:00.005+01:00

Recently Mother Ivey's Bay was pleased to welcome Pat and David Pearce to our park for our annual "Bellamy" Inspection and annual audit report. This inspection results in our David Bellamy Award grading. Our focus this year was on recycling which is an area in which Mother Ivey's Bay is performing strongly thanks to a programme of changes that we have implemented.

Customer feedback is a critical part of our audit process and David is particularly keen that as many customers as possible complete a "Bellamy Postcard". These "Bellamy Postcards" are available free at Reception or you can ask a member of the gardening team.

The David Bellamy Award is given to holiday parks that take a pro active approach to minimise the environmental impact of their work on the surrounding environment. In addition parks, which are often located in privileged and stunning natural locations, are encouraged to be good custodians of the land and to support bio diversity and wildlife habitat alongside the operation of the business.

Mother Ivey's Bay holds a David Bellamy Gold Award.

Beach Safety & the RNLI

2009-07-15T09:35:00.005+01:00

Here at Mother Ivey's Bay Holiday Park, we welcome guests of all ages, most of whom make good use of the local beaches in the area. The north coast of Cornwall is blessed with a winning combination of golden sandy beaches and exhilarating surf which makes for exciting swimming and watersports.

We would urge all of our guests, though, to bear in mind that the sea and tides require respect from visitors at all times of the year.

If in any doubt at all about tide times and local currents, or if your surfing/swimming skills haven't been used in a while you should consider visiting one of the many local beaches with a lifeguard patrol. On any of these beaches you have the benefit of local experts to keep an eye on conditions and the safest areas to swim or surf will be clearly marked out.

It is helpful to familiarise yourself with the flag markers and what they mean when you arrive at the beach.

In addition to providing a very valuable beach lifeguard service, the RNLI also operate an all weather lifeboat station on Trevose Head which is clearly visible from Mother Ivey's Bay. The Padstow lifeboat is a relatively new Tamar Class (appropriately enough!) "Spirit of Padstow" which has been in service since 2006. You can visit the RNLI station dfuring your stay and and any contribution you can make to the invaluable work of the RNLI will, we are sure, be most appreciated.

Caravan for Sale at MIB

2009-07-03T15:03:00.006+01:00

Mother Ivey's Bay are pleased to announce a rare opportunity to buy a caravan on the park. This 4 birth caravan (year of manufacture 2007) is licensed until December 2016.

Caravan dimensions are 32 ft by 12 ft. Caravan is sited with steps, storage box, TV aerial and outside tap. Purchase price is £27,500. Details of additional annual fees can be found HERE.

Impressive surf at MIB

2009-06-26T12:19:00.002+01:00

Our special thanks to Richard Vinall who has sent us this awesome photo taken on Mother Ivey’s beach during his holiday last summer. It comes with a Health Warning… always best just to admire the sea when it is as wild as this, and never go in! Thanks for sharing the photo with us Richard. If anyone else would like to share their Mother Ivey’s holiday photos and memories, we would love to hear from you.

Young arrivals at MIB!

2009-06-22T16:51:00.004+01:00

We are celebrating here with the latest crop of young Swallows to call MIB home! Their parents return to Mother Ivey's Bay every year and build their nests in our undercover store area next to the Housekeeping shed. The undercover store is used to keep most of the weather off our Grass cutting machine, which is used every day. Having said this the Swallows are not put off by the comings and going during the day.

They seem to be growing rapidly, which is just as well as these migratory youngsters have quite a flight ahead of them!

Planning starts for new facilities

2009-06-18T14:22:00.004+01:00

We are planning a major overhaul of our touring facilities, replacing the existing ‘Palace’ and ‘Field’ toilet blocks with completely new facilities that will incorporate the latest ‘green’ technology without compromising customer comfort. This is in keeping with Mother Ivey's policy to have as little harmful impact on the environment as possible.

Regular updates will appear on our website and this blog as the project progresses.

FEEDBACK & IDEAS REQUESTED

Customers are invited to email info@motheriveysbay.com with any suggestions for the new facilities or you can leave a comment here on our blog. Please also tell us if you already know of excellent touring facilities on other Parks because as they say ‘imitation is the sincerest form of flattery’, and if someone else is already doing it well then we would like to know.

Our photo shows architects Claire Newman and Roger Green from PDP Green Consulting Ltd making a preliminary survey on Monday 8th June 2009.

Calling all Carnival Queens

2009-06-16T12:00:00.003+01:00

The nearby village of St Merryn is holding the 2009 St Merryn Carnival on Saturday 15^th August and would welcome any fairy queens and carnival queens from around the country to join in the fun, so please don’t hesitate to contact the carnival committee on 07812-841024 if you are on holiday at the time and wish to take part. There will also be categories for child and adult walkers, so you don’t have to be a fairy queen to join in the fun while on holiday! Entrants assemble at 6.00 pm at the playing fields, and of course everyone is welcome to watch the parade through the village.

Stunning Sunset at Mother Ivey's Bay

2009-06-13T15:49:00.004+01:00

Guests at the park are often treated to some stunning sunsets, along with impressive sea conditions and a variety of local wildlife. This picture of a particularly stunning sunset over the park was taken this month.

There are a selection of photos of life at the park, regularly updated in the photo gallery of the main Mother Ivey's Bay website. A selection can also be found on their facebook page along with details of upcoming local events.

Smokers lose their ashtray!

2009-06-08T14:11:00.002+01:00

Life for the smoking regulars at the Cornish Arms pub just got a little bit tougher! One of their wall-mounted ashtrays has been commandeered by a family of Blue Tits, leaving them to stub their cigarettes out in a temporary facility.

The cheeky Blue Tit family decided that the ashtray was just what they were looking for for their new family and promptly moved in, much to the amusement of the management and many of the pub's human clientele.

The new residents between them have created a comfortable nest and laid four eggs which have now hatched. Pub manager Colin Hart said the feathered "squatters" were discovered nesting two weeks ago.

He said: "One morning we noticed something going in and out of the cigarette box. We investigated and discovered a blue tit was nesting in there.

"There were some eggs which have now hatched into chicks, and their mother is busy feeding them. All the staff and regulars want to keep them protected."

Recycling at Mother Ivey's Bay

2009-06-04T14:29:00.002+01:00

The amount of rubbish that is generated is staggering. Glass bottles, Plastic bottles, Paper, Card and Tins are all things that can be recycled. Everything else, at the moment, has to go to landfill.

Here at Mother Ivey’s we have been keen to attack this problem and have introduced, over the last few years, Recycling Bins within our waste collection areas around the Caravan Park. Last year we tried to encourage all of our guests to recycle as much as possible. The good news is that we have really got into recycling and the proof for us is in how many times we have had to exchange the large recycling skips.

2008 we exchanged one 8 yard skip of each type of waste (Plastic bottles and Tins, Cardboard, and paper) In the first 2 months of 2009 season (April and May) we have exchanged 1 skip of each type with the second skips to be exchanged by the end of June.

This must be great news for Mother Ivey’s and of course for Cornwall and our Children. We must keep this up and improve on other waste streams.

Summer planting at Mother Ivey's Bay

2009-06-01T09:48:00.004+01:00

While many garden lovers have descended on the RHS Chelsea Garden Show in May, perhaps they should have come to Mother Ivey’s for their inspiration! Late May is the ideal time to prepare the flower beds and our gardening duet of Wendy and Phil have been busy replanting the beds around our entrance and reception. They replaced the Wall Flowers that looked lovely earlier in the season with a magnificent display of geraniums, as we prepare for a beautiful summer. Our photos show the beds ‘before’ and ‘after’ planting.

For more photos of Mother Ivey's Bay, why not visit the Photo Gallery?

Royal Visitor at Trevose Head

2009-05-25T13:21:00.006+01:00

Trevose Head welcomed a VIP guest on Tuesday (19 May 2009) when His Royal Highness The Duke of Kent paid a Royal Visit to our friends at the Padstow RNLI Boathouse, across the bay from Mother Ivey’s.

We have to offer thanks to our local paparazzi, Mr ‘long lens’ Jim Rushton, who captured His Royal Highness landing by helicopter at Mother Ivey’s Cottage, on his way to meet the Cox of the Padstow Lifeboat, Mr Alan Tarby, and other local dignitaries.

It was an excellent opportunity for His Royal Highness to see the fabulous new Boathouse and to meet the brave crew. The Lifeboat station is clearly visible from our park, nestled into the rugged Cornish coastline. At present, we have a caravan for sale enjoying views across to the lifeboat station.

BBC Film Crew comes to MIB

2009-05-22T10:43:00.006+01:00

While the rest of Padstow celebrated May Day and the Obby Oss, Mother Ivey’s Bay received a visit from a BBC film crew.

Last summer the crew filmed ‘Summer and Autumn’, two of the Four Seasons from Rosamund Pilcher’s popular book, and on 1st May they were filming scenes for ‘Winter and Spring’, completing the story.

Sadly, Tom Conti wasn’t required for filming, as we would have liked to have seen him at Mother Ivey's Bay. We won’t spoil it for anyone who has not read the book, but the BBC has the UK film rights and will broadcast it later in the year (we think!).

If it takes your fancy, you might also be able to watch it during a visit to Spain and Germany. Rosamund Pilcher is very very popular in Germany, with much of her work produced specially for German TV.

Below are some pictures from the day showing the crew's vans and two of the horses taking a well-earned break between takes!

Marine Conservation at MIB

2009-05-21T14:20:00.000+01:00

Mother Ivey’s Bay has just completed its Beach survey for the Marine Conservation society. The results are then sent to them for analysis. We try to complete 4 a year with the results being used to assess the impact of waste that ends up in the seas around our coast.

The team at Mother Ivey’s takes pride in the quality of our beach and this survey helps us to make sure that the beach is clean and safe. We have team members that clean the beach every day.

The amount of waste that is in our seas needs to be controlled as we all enjoy going to clean beaches and seeing lots of different creatures in and around the coasts and coast lines.

Accolades for 2009

2009-05-21T14:01:00.000+01:00

Mother Ivey's Bay is proud to have collected a number of prestigious accolades ahead of the 2009 holiday season.

The outstanding Customer Service Award was presented to our Housekeeper and Head Gardener Wendy Redford-Jones by Ruby Wax. (see left margin of blog)

The David Bellamy Gold Award! for conservation is an award we are particularly proud of at the park. The award recognizes the efforts we go to to care for, protect and preserve the stunning location we are lucky enough to be able to offer at Mother Ivey's Bay. In a similar vein, we are proud holders of the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty accolade.