Day 4 – Ramsey to Onchan
At last – a clear day without rain!
There was still a bit of a breeze, but not as bad as yesterday!
The journey out of Ramsey was on the
road. To an extent this is inevitable, but it was perhaps for longer
than intended. If approaching Port e Vullen from the beach, check
tide times first. As the tide was coming in, I decided to err on the
side of caution. Looking at it from the other end, it appears I would
actually have been ok after all.
Once on the path properly and away from
the road, the views on the approach to Maughold were stunning –
there was even a glimpse of Cumbria in the distance.
After following a few more contours
around the cliffs after leaving Maughold, a lot of the next stretch
is on road, criss-crossing the Manx electric railway. Ballajora
station provided a brief chance to check the map and get some water
on board. This bit was uphill, and it was starting to get hot! It was
also interesting to see just how far inland this bit of the coast
path was!
What goes up must come down, and after
Cornaa, a very pleasant descent through the glen led to Port Cornaa –
before going back up the equally pleasant other side!
More road to walk on, and more railway
to walk alongside. Also, more walkers out today than I have
previously seen. This is almost certainly because it is Saturday, but
also, the Parish Walk is coming up next month, an 85-mile walk over
24 hours, and many people were training for that. Indeed, it's been
commented that I move at a fair lick when I get going. Perhaps. Some
of these race walkers, though, could, and did, leave me standing!
After Dhoon, I was passed by some
walkers whilst having a sandwich. Once I got going again, I followed
them for the next mile or so, but they were obviously in training and
just disappeared further and further into the distance.
More minor roads, passing close to King
Orry's Grave eventually give way to a drop through Old Laxey into
Laxey, but only time for the briefest relaxey! No, I wasn't pushing
myself unnecessarily - had that been the case I would have reached
Peel, not Niarbyl on Day 1!
To be serious, I did have a little time
to admire this seaside town. Even stopped at a cafe for a bottle of
irn-bru to go, but, as has been mentioned earlier in this blog, this
is a walking holiday, not a tea-shop holiday, so on we go.
If it had felt like all road up to now,
the next section really was road – the A2 until Baldrine is almost
reached. On the road, I met a cyclist going the other way, he asked
how far it was to Laxey and was very relieved when I said it was 2
miles maximum! I think the heat was beginning to get to a couple of
people by now!
After leaving the road, the path
doesn't go where you expect it to when you reach Ballannette. It
seems as if you turn left before a gate that seems to lead on to
private property, but actually, what looks to be private isn't – at
least, not right here, so it's forward onto this land before a right
turn.
Actually, it is private property, but
very welcoming to walkers and cyclists. The way is clearly marked,
there are a couple of outside taps with notices inviting you to help
yourself to drinking water. Well, of course I filled one of my
bottles. There was even a loo a little further on with charity
collecting tins on the windowsill! The helpful, welcoming, friendly
nature of whoever designed this made this part of the walk a joy. If
you are the owner of this estate, or if you are responsible for the
facilities which help put a spring in a tired walker's step,
thank-you.
I chose to make a detour after that, to
Old Lonan's Kirk. Well worth a visit it is too. Apparently, in the
day the local population were complaining that the church was too
remote for them. It's partly in ruins these days, but not totally,
and even the parts which are in ruins are well-preserved. For
instance, I shouldn't have been surprised to see the font when I went
through the door, but a roof might be useful unless you want the risk
of everyone being baptised!
A seat in the churchyard proved a
useful place to locate a car park on the map, a mile or so further
on, and I texted John to make that today's meeting place. What
happened next was positively barking!
The two women on the path in front of
me must have been walking at least a dozen dogs between them. There
wasn't a lead to be seen. All it took was one bark, and before I knew
what was happening, there were a dozen dogs running towards me, and
two women yelling at them as if that was going to make any
difference. Now fair play, these weren't dangerous dogs by any means,
just little yappers, so I stopped, patted as many as I could reach
and said “Hey, what's the fuss?” and was very soon allowed to
continue with no further ado. But before I had reached the end of the
road, someone else must have passed them, for I heard the barking and
the yells of the women again and wondered what might happen should
anything more serious than a passing walker distract the dogs'
attention.
I reached the car-park no worse for my
ordeal by dog (!) and sat in the shelter by the stop for the electric
train opposite. Well, wouldn't it be the case that the train arrived
at the same time as John did. So I was furiously waving to John
trying to get his attention whilst waving to the driver of the train
to say that I didn't require the train service, thank-you.
Thankfully, it all worked out ok, and another day's walking was
successfully completed.
Sunday – a day off walking. I
preached at Port Erin Methodist Church in the morning, played the
organ at St Mary's Parish Church, Port St Mary, in the afternoon, and
later had an unexpected but very pleasant meeting with an old friend
before preaching at Ballagarey Methodist Church in the evening. It
was good to meet some of the Manx Methodists and see what life in the
Methodist church is like in this corner of the Connexion.
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