The ruined chapel in Master of Hanging Cross is not quite as derelict as this one. In the book, the chapel still has its walls and roof and provides enough cover for the secret activities that take place within it.
But it did give me the idea for the book; one day when I was walking the South West Coastal Path from Minehead towards Porlock.
There is a point where you can leave the main path and drop down towards the sea. Here, hidden in the undergrowth, are the ruins of tiny Burgundy Chapel.
It is completely isolated and the only sounds are the wind and the waves and the call of birds. It’s a place where imagination can run free and it’s easy to believe that anything could happen.
I remember thinking what a marvellous hideout it would make for smugglers. Or what a romantic trysting place it would be for secret lovers. And so it was that the seeds of the story were sown.
In the book, Kate explores the cliff path and comes across the ruined Chapel.
She turned off the path in the direction of the sound and found herself in dense undergrowth and trees. Great drifts of ferns and nettles covered the ground. Ash and birch saplings competed for space with stunted mature trees. It was dark and shady. Then she turned a corner and there it was.
The chapel was so well hidden that she would almost certainly have missed it had it not been for the dogs. It was a perfect hiding place for smugglers.
The building seemed in remarkably good condition considering its age. Its grey stone walls and slate roof were still largely intact. Some of the windows had lost their glass and had been boarded but the heavy oak door still hung in place beneath the arched stone porch.
Gingerly, she pushed it open and stepped inside. The floor was flagged with the same smooth grey stone that had formed the rough steps on the path. Simple wooden pews lined each side of the central aisle. The atmosphere was cool and silent. And haunting; as though it hid a hundred secrets.
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