South West Play: Commandeer Pirate Ship!
South
West Play, the bespoke manufacturer of rope and net play equipment, has
collaborated with Cornwall’s Crealy to salvage a small fleet of redundant
fishing boats that had fallen into disrepair and has turned them into an
exciting new attraction at the Adventure Park, called Buccaneer Battles.
With
the help and expertise of Patch Harvey, Coxswain of the Penlee Lifeboat and the
permission of the Harbourmaster, South West Play refloated the unseaworthy 24ft
Tosher, which had lain redundant in Newlyn Harbour for several years. Drew
Davies, the Managing Director of South West Play, and Patch Harvey towed the
vessel across the harbour to Canners Slip, where it was removed from the water.
Along
with the other boats, the Tosher was restored and re-sited in soft play sand,
to form the centrepiece of the pirate-themed play area, Buccaneer Battles,
which has been designed to stimulate and encourage learning and creativity
while being environmentally friendly.
The
boats have been equipped with many play accessories such as climbing nets and
slides, plus authentic features such as
wheelhouses with ships’ wheels, port holes, rope ladders, bridges, gangplank
and, of course, the Jolly Roger. Air cannons have been fitted so junior pirates
can fire foam balls at each other for a proper swashbuckling adventure.
Buccaneer
Battles is the latest attraction at Crealy Great Adventure Park in Wadebridge,
one of the best outdoor family attractions in Cornwall with a massive choice of
activities. A generous donation of £300 to show their appreciation for the
boats has been made by Crealy to the RNLI Penlee Lifeboat Fund, to help ensure
that the 24-hour lifesaving services for those in danger on the water continue
from the station at Newlyn.
“We
were delighted to work with SouthWest Play and the RNLI to salvage these
wonderful old vessels,” said Simon Townsend, General Manager of Cornwall’s
Crealy. “South West Play’s ethos of using sustainable resources while improving
the local area fits in with our vision and we are thrilled with the end result,
as Buccaneer Battles is already proving very popular with our guests.”
Drew
Davies of South West Play, the specialist manufacturers of imaginative,
stimulating and challenging rope and net play equipment that allow today’s
endless imaginations to run wild, can be contacted on 01736 360254 or info@southwestplay.co.uk.
For details and photographs of the restoration process, visit www.southwestplay.co.uk
