Claire and Neil - Cornish Camels Wedding

The storm of the century, a wedding venue hidden in the wilds of The Lizard, a secret cove and camels. It sounds surreal, but Claire and Neil’s wedding at Cornish Camels encompassed all this and more. A Cornish Camels wedding is always going to be slightly surreal. It is an idyllic venue which, as the name suggests, has an added extra that no other wedding venue has – Camels!

The only issue on the wedding day is that 3 days before the area had been devastated by the catastrophic floods at Coverack. Thoughts about the weather were definitely on everyones minds running up to the wedding day. Claire prepared for the big day at her nearby parents house. With a short journey to the wedding venue, the aim had been to hold the wedding ceremony outside. Throughout the morning, The Lizard was buffeted by sea squalls and heavy downpours. One of the many beautiful things about The Lizard is that you are surrounded by sea on both sides of the peninsula. This can give it an almost maritime feel. The weather, however, can also behave accordingly. You could not predict how the weather would eventually settle on the day.

The plan for the wedding at Cornish Camels had been to hold the ceremony outside. Unfortunately, this was just not to be and 10 minutes before the ceremony, the heavens opened. This led the groomsmen dashing to get the hay bale seating that had been provided for the guests inside for the hastily moved ceremony to be held under cover. It did not matter. The rustic barn was beautiful, cosy and intimate. A perfect Cornish Camels wedding.

The next part of the day presented its own unique challenges. Claire and Neil had wanted to have their wedding photos on a beach. We talked through nearby locations and they suggested a hidden location on the coast near Coverack. I must admit I had been to this beach only once before, but could definitely remember a steep path leading to a rope and a scramble down a cliff followed by a waterfall. It was an adventure to get down there. Claire had wrapped her wedding dress in an old dress which worked fantastically (top tip if you have a remote, muddy, location to get to on your wedding day for photos). The adventure was worth it. The secret cove was beautiful and we were given a break in the weather. It was just enough to get the photos we wanted before the heavens once more opened. The deluge left us scrambling under umbrellas. All part of the fun.

The day went by with lawn games (the rain had stopped), the wedding breakfast and speeches. Just before sunset the clouds finally dispersed and we were treated to the warmth of the suns rays again. We were also treated to camels, who finally came out. They are incredible animals and loved the attention they were given. The evening was completed by the always wonderful Splann Ceilidh Band who got everyone up onto the dance floor. The perfect end to a Cornish Camels wedding.

What I loved most about the day was Claire and Neils enduring optimism. They could have let the weather get them down. But they didn’t. In fact they embraced it and made it part of their day.