John Maltman's Photos

Here are a few of the photos John took on holiday.

Leaving Heysham

The Hydro Hotel

Coastal Path Port st Mary to Port Erin

Coastal Path Port st Mary to Port Erin

C Party 

Tea Break

Snaefell Summit

Snaefell Summit

Snaefell Summit

Joey Dunlop

Looking N E across the island

At the Horse Sanctuary !

Fishermen at Peel Harbour

Day 7 Douglas to Bradford

Well after all that wind yesterday I think we were all expecting a rough ride home but the ferry was surprisingly stable and the sun shone for most of the way so we had a nice little cruise to finish off the holiday. After a lunch stop at the motorway services it was none stop back home arriving in Bingley just before 3.00 pm.
The Isle of Man is a special place with its own kind of magic. We were lucky to see it in all kinds of weather and I think everyone was favourably impressed. Many thanks to Mike and Jackie and the sub committees that organised the holiday. Also thanks to the walks leaders and Jef from Alfa Travel and the Hydro Hotel for making the holiday most enjoyable. There are still many places to be explored on the island. A week certainly isn't long enough.
Next year Donegal but I won't be there as I HATE FERRIES! If anyone else wants to do a blog I am willing to offer help or advice. It would be a shame if it goes unrecorded. Go on you can do it!

Day 6 Glen Maye to Peel

The weather forecast for today was for gale force winds and torrential rain and for once it was correct! Many people decided not to walk today but I wanted to see Peel so I opted for the C walk 5 miles. We dropped the A and B parties off somewhere in a cloud, good job they know how to use a compass! This type of cloud is common in the Isle of Man and is referred to as the Cloak of Mannaman as it casts a cloak of invisibility over the island.

We went down out of the cloud and started the walk at Glen Maye where there was a spectacular waterfall.

 The water was thundering through and it was quite exhilarating. Here's a link to a short video of the waterfall on a normal day! Not nearly so much fun.
Once we got down to the shore the wind was gusting off the sea and the rain was still pouring down. We found out later that a month's rain had fallen in one day and I think most of it went down my boots!

It made for difficult walking along the coastal path and quite scary at times. If the wind had been blowing in any other direction the walk would have been impossible. However we persevered and once Peel Tower came into sight we branched off the coastal path and made our way down to Peel. Most of the party decided to return to Douglas on the service bus as they were rather wet. Jean, Ann and I wanted to visit the castle and see what Peel had to offer....mad fools! So after a coffee and cake in the visitor centre we left a large puddle on the floor and set out for the castle.

It was very windy up at the castle but the views would have been spectacular on a good day. You can just see the coach on this last photo and that was when we decided we had had enough and sought refuge from the wind and rain. The B party had already arrived and were getting warm in the pub. They had managed to do the whole 11 miles of the walk in difficult circumstances. The A party were nowhere to be seen but I found out later they had abandoned the walk and gone back on the service bus!
Jef had kindly taken some of the others around to some interesting places to fill in the time. Sheila has provided these photos.

Jurby Books

Jurby Junk Shop

Norman Wisdom's Grave

Glenfaba Mill, Peel

 Jackie then became an agent for selling Isle of Man Alfa Travel T-shirts which were quite popular and you can see them modelled here back at the hotel.

So it was a wet day for our last day but it hadn't dampened our spirits, it takes more than a bit of rain for that to happen! An early night for most as bags had to be packed and outside the room for 6.00 am and breakfast at 7.00 am.
For more photos of Peel in the sunshine follow this link.

Day 5 Steam train to Port Erin

Today was Thursday and it was raining! This was Wednesday's walk originally and the one I had picked out to miss. Its always good to give yourself a day off to have a more relaxed look around. Anita and I decided to take a trip on the steam train to Port Erin and this was really like stepping back in time.

It was a wet walk to the station and the train was full but we found a few friends to join us in our compartment. I'm sure it must have been the noisiest place on the train as we discussed what would happen if someone was taken ill and how to stop the train. Thankfully we didn't need to stop the train and we duly arrived an hour later in Port Erin where it was still raining so we visited the railway shop. We spent some time watching a DVD of the various types of transport on the Isle of Man and by the time we came out the weather had improved so we headed for the sea front where we found some lovely courtyard gardens in front of the old fishermen's cottages.

Next stop the Cosy Nook cafe for a drink and a muffin.

What a great spot right on the beach and reasonable prices too. Of course after that we had to have a walk on the beach and one thing leads to another!

While we were playing on the beach, Jean and Ann had taken a walk onto Bradda Head where Jean took this photo of the Milners' tower and the Calf of Man in the distance.

Apparently a photograph taken from this spot in 1931 won a world photographic prize of £4000. I think it must have been better weather then.

 Anita and I looked around the shops for a while and then returned to the station to catch the train back to Douglas.

We had a carriage to ourselves this time so could fully appreciate the sounds and smell of a steam train.
Once back in Douglas we parted company to have a bit of retail therapy in the town. The weather was still poor here and had been all day.

Douglas Marina

A nice relaxing day and an ice cream on the way back to the hotel just finished it off nicely!

Day 4 Ballasalla to Douglas

Wednesday today so we were doing Tuesday's walk as it was the coach driver's day off. I opted for the A party this time and it was very select, only 7 of us on the walk and I was the only woman! We took the service bus to Ballasalla and walked along beside the airport down to the coastal path and all the way back to Douglas, It said 12.5 miles on the sheet but these Manx miles are so much longer.

Anyway it was another beautiful day and splendid scenery all the way.

Its really hard work on these A walks, no time to stop and stare you know!

Well I'm sure it is sometimes but while Harry and Mick disappeared into the distance the rest of us enjoyed the moment in the sun.
Apart from some tedious road walking towards the end it was a splendid walk passing Port Soderick and then on to the Marine Drive into Douglas.

As we approached Douglas the ferry was just arriving  so we speeded up so that we could watch it turning in the harbour.

By the time we had watched this and got down into the town we had missed the last horse tram so had to walk back to the hotel stopping off for a chat with Norman Wisdom outside the Gaiety Theatre.

Laxey

Now Jean Moxon had decided to take a day out on her own and had a lovely time visiting Laxey. Here are a few of her photos. She spent some time on the beach sunbathing and chatting to the locals so she got to know Laxey rather well!