It seems rather busy today – lots of grandparents, grandchildren and dogs – but mostly they don’t venture far from the car park. We’ll start with the walled garden (lots of rapidly ripening fruit!), then head out around the deer park for a leg stretch.
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Friday 11 August: Who needs the Med! On a day like, the clear waters of the Firth of Clyde look very tempting. I’m on a day out by rail, from Dunbar to Glasgow, from where I’ll use ‘boat trains’ to visit Ardrossan, Largs and Wemyss Bay. Serving Arran, Great Cumbrae and Bute, a trip across the ‘watter’ from these ports would be most enjoyable, but time is tight. A flying (floating?) visit from Largs to Great Cumbrae, on the smallest of the ferries, will suffice. After this recce mission, a ‘proper’ visit will be in order – I’d better start planning…
There’s much more on the railway journey at Boat trains on Geoff’s Rail Diaries
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A quiet evening along the cliff path at Dunbar, followed by an afternoon in Haddington. Not much time for photography
…
More hedgerow colour on a bright afternoon. The damsons will soon be ripe (perhaps they are already – but they were out of reach…)
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An amble along Shirlett Lane on a showery afternoon. There are all kinds of interesting things coming up – I think autumn is going to be particularly fruitful this year…
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29 July: Our last day on the Isle of Man. Before we board the ferry for the crossing to Liverpool, we need a leg-stretch – up to Howstrake and back. There will be trams galore! It’s quite a scenic stretch too, as the tramway climbs from sea level at Derby Castle to the clifftops at Howstrake, where there’s a great view of the Groudle Glen line to Sea Lion Rocks. Some of the views are below; to see the trams, visit Douglas Trams on Geoff’s Rail Diaries
28 July: The Manx Electric Railway runs via Laxey to Ramsey. For full details of our trip, and more rail-related photos, visit Ramsey and Laxey on Geoff’s Rail Diaries.
After visiting Ramsey and its pier, we returned to Laxey – almost. Getting off the tram at Minorca, we walked down to the harbour, then back up the glen to Laxey station.
27 July: we’re on the bus this morning, from just outside our hotel straight through to Castletown, and beyond – a bus stop giving access, via a very quiet country lane, to the shore path at Poyllvaaish. Once again, we’re following the Raad ny Foillan, this time via Scarlett Point and its remarkable rocks, back to Castletown. Here we’ll visit Castle Rushen, before catching another bus to take us on to Port Erin. We wander slowly down to the harbour then back to the railway station for our return run on the last train of the day to Douglas (on Geoff’s Rail Diaries)
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26 July continued: Just published to Geoff’s Rail Diaries – photos and an account of of visit to the Groudle Glen Railway (for excellent cake!) and a rainy ride to Port Erin and back. (‘Erin’ is very nearly an anagram of ‘rain’. Hmm)
Visit Groudle Glen (and rainy Port Erin) for the soggy details!
26 July: There are several scenic glens around the Isle of Man. Groudle Glen is a good example, and has the added attraction of a super little 2′ gauge railway – one which “runs uphill to the sea”. That’s why we’re here, but before the trains start running, we’ll enjoy the glen (and make the most of a dry morning – there’s rain coming later)
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