Porthleven in November: Why the Off-Season is the Best Season

Every Cornish sketcher knows Porthleven in summer. Tourists, ice cream, the harbour packed with boats and people and the particular chaos of a popular destination on a bank holiday weekend. Beautiful. Impossible to sketch without someone standing in front of you.

November is different. The cafe on the harbour is still open — it is always open, regardless of what the weather suggests — but the harbour itself is quiet. The boats that stayed through summer have been hauled out or moored further back. The ones that remain are there because they work, and working boats have a completely different quality to leisure boats.

The light in November is low all day. There are no harsh midday shadows washing out the colour. The sea is the colour it actually is rather than the postcard version. The whole place feels more honest.

I rode out on a Thursday morning, 23 miles from Penryn. Made three sketches. Ate a pasty from the bakery on the hill. Rode home in fading light. That is a good day.