THE Smugglers Inn, situated just two minutes from the beach in the picturesque village of Cawsand, is rightly des-cribed as a 'locals' local', because although it has many visitors during the summer, it is the regulars who make it the busy venue it is.

A traditional free house, with a friendly welcome assured from landlady, Penny Farley, it also has 'atmosphere'. Not that anyone mentioned ghosts when the Cornish Times called, but given that a smugglers tunnel used to run under the building, with the entrance coming up in what is now the ladies loo, it would be easy to imagine the men of the past, still secretly walking the tunnel at night! Kingsand and Cawsand were renowned for smuggling activities and there are at least five tunnels in the twin villages which are known about.

The Smugglers' building , listed in records as far back as 1650, was originally a chandlery, and it is thought it became a pub at the end of the 19th century. It was called The Cross Keys, which was to do with it once being in the ownership of the Mount Edgcumbe Estate, as was most of the village. However, in the 1960's the name was changed to The Smugglers Inn, an apt choice considering the history.

Rallied round

Penny took over the pub seven years ago with her husband John, a local man who left the area and decided to come back to his roots. The couple had lived together for 11 years, but when they bought The Smugglers they decided to get married as well. It was John who set up the Rame Gig Club with two of his cousins. Sadly, John died suddenly two years ago, and is still very much missed by everyone. However, Penny says that the local people have been wonderful and have rallied round to help her.

Retired lighthouse keeper John Bell has become Penny's cellarman. 'His help is invaluable and he also cleans all the pipes for me' she said. Then there is full time bar person Amy Dillon who joined the pub in September, along with her Lurcher dog Loopy who has his own bean bag under the counter.

Behind the bar in the afternoons you will find Ross Parrotte. He originates from Birmingham and had been coming to Cawsand on holiday for 16 years, sometimes with the family, and also with the sea cadets of which he was a Commanding Officer. But over three years ago he decided to move to the village permanently. 'Im enjoying my change of lifestyle, and I wouldn't move from here if you paid me' he said.

Trisha Stubberfield lives next door to The Smugglers and not only helps out behind the bar when it gets busy, but also says the pub is her local. She visited the village two summers ago and just didn't bother to go home. Now a jewellery maker she said it was a great place to live. 'It's known as the Cawsand pull' she said. 'Once you arrive it's hard to get away again!'

The Smugglers has a darts team which plays in the Millbrook league, and is currently half way up the table, which Penny says is a bit too good to get the wooden spoon. 'We have won it once and we take the attitude that any trophy is better than no tropy', she laughs. However, their very own award which is their's to keep on a shelf behind the bar is the 'We cannot lose' trophy. This is a wooden dart mounted on a board and made and presented by team captain, Pat Hocking a retired shipwright in the RAF.

Games

The pub keeps a selection of games which the customers like to play, including backgammon, crib, bar skittles and dominoes, and there is a box of crayons to keep the children happy. 'This is a family pub so I like to make sure the children have something to do' says Penny.

Among the regular locals are father and son Roy and Kit French. Kit's real name is Christopher but he prefers the Cornish version which is Kitto, and has now been shortened by family and friends.

Roy and children, who also include daughter Anna who works in Switzerland, and son Toby, now in Totnes, where he is a musician and director of the famous percussion group Jam Samba, arrived in Cawsand in 1988. Unusually they lived on a 40' catamaran the Shere Kan for about ten years, but now reside on dry land at Maker Heights.

Roy is a care assistant at night and by day he is an electrician, hoping soon to be self employed. A well known musician, Kit, also a boatwright and sailing crew, can entertain on his guitar with any kind of music, but says he has grown fond of Spanish music, and has started to play the violin again, enjoying Irish folk.

Favourite

Kingsand resident Colin Campbell-Charters, an account manager for Eurobell, says The Smugglers is his favourite pub. 'When we moved here a few years ago Penny and John were the first people we met and they made us very welcome' he said. Local solicitor Basil Aucott-Young from Millbrook also pops in most days for a pint and enjoys a game on the pool table. Like Colin, who often brings along his German Shepherd dog Prince, Basil brings his Tibetan terrier Harry.

Apparently the dogs treat The Smugglers as their second home. Penny says the pub seems to attract them, and on Good Friday this year, when the weather was terrible, she counted 14 of them packed in like sardines with their owners.

But it is the pub cat, Kofi, a blue tabby point Siamese, who rules the roost among the four legged customers from her lofty perch on a bar stool. Very beautiful, and she knows it, she will often go up to a passing dog and kiss it on the nose. A pub favourite, she was Penny's gift from John on her 50th birthday.

Because the pub is situated in the Rame Pensinsula, Penny often gets people in who have been out enjoying many of the local walks, and not only does she serve up some good refreshing beer, including 'real ale' Tangle Foot, but she is also the chef and prepares traditional and filling pub grub. Locals also enjoy Penny's fare, as do children who have their own menu.

Anniversary

In the summer customers and locals like to take their drinks out into The Square and sit around the old fountain, an area which is part of the Kingsand/Cawsand regeneration scheme and which Penny says will look much nicer with some new paving and seats.

Proud of her pub, she carefully tends her window boxes which are still fully in bloom and says the whole area is destined to look brighter which means she will be even busier.

'I love The Smugglers' she said, 'and I do my best to make it friendly and warm for everyone. We work here as a team'. And to show how much Penny is part of the community, a party with Millbrook band STATS (Peter Stanniforth and Mark Stephenson) was held last Saturday, to mark her 7th anniversary at the pub.