Saving St Patricks

Somehow, the day after I won the End to End Walk this year, we once again ended up on the same route along the North West coast of the Island, though it has to be said, this time in the car.

Driving past the turn off to St Patricks Church Jurby, we noticed that there was an exhibition of paintings and photographs on that day.

It was an 'Off the cuff' sort of day, so whilst turning the vehicle, we ended up in a farmyard that sold its own produce and we were able to buy beetroot, cabbage, potatoes and apples for a fraction of what we would have paid in the supermarket.

As we walked towards the church, it occurred to me that whilst I visited here 9 times during the Parish Walk, never once had I journeyed through the gate.



The pictures turned out to have been painted by local artist, Peter Lloyd-Davies who was actually there in person. We are still using some of the trays and table mats that he unfortunately is no longer able to produce but this was our first meeting.

His son Tony (who somehow is a friend of mine, as Facebook moves in mysterious ways) was the photographer and they were exhibiting to try and raise funds for necessary renovations for the building.



St Patricks although not the most spectacular piece of ecclesiastical architecture has a tower and dominates the scenery from many miles around (I should know having also walked past it in the many other races ;)) It also has historical links with the Second World War because of the nearby airfield.

The Bishop of Soda and Mann has recently brought the plight of many of our Island's churches into the media spotlight with his comments about who is going to pay for their upkeep.



The subject was featured on 'Talking Heads,' the Manx Radio, 'Phone-in Show'and the weight of opinion seemed to suggest that it was up to the Church to maintain its own property though with congregations dwindling in number this would not seem to be sustainable.

Better usage and Government help seemed to be the Bishop's proposals and though it is good to see that the CoE is being pro-active with the provision of pre-schools, it is hard to see how our rulers will be able to justify spending huge amounts whilst we are in our current predicament.

Unfortunately, I have no magic wand to wave but I think it would be an awful shame if we are to start to lose some of these wonderful edifices that adorn our towns and countryside and help to display our heritage. I also suspect that though the queue may be short of benefactors willing to part with their money, the queue to criticise the people that allowed them to be lost will be long.

Good luck to the Parish of Jurby in the quest to preserve St Patricks.br />
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Sailing for the Disabled

One our many unrealised ambitions is to become sailors.

Here we are in the centre of the Irish Sea with so many exciting places to visit in close proximity and we spend almost all our time clinging to the Rock, without taking advantage of the two of our greatest and ever present gifts, the wind and the ocean.

For some years now, one of the charities that The Welbeck Hotel & Restaurant has supported is Sailing for the Disabled.



However, one way or another, we never quite managed to go to one of their 'Get togethers' to actually go and see the boat until just a few weeks ago.



It really is a marvellous vessel and the way in which they are able to winch on wheelchair users and the boat is adapted to allow them to sail is ingenious, though it has to be remembered that there are lots of different disabilities, each presenting their own challenge.

We are hoping to be able to join in one day and go for an excursion which hopefully won't take us as long to grasp an opportunity.

My Tenuous Link to Fame

It was great to see that Robert Heffernan won the World Athletics 50k Walk after 4th placing in major championships at least twice.



Indeed he was so delighted, he started celebrating early and ended up missing out on the Irish record by 2 seconds but what a performance. And I'll bet it was his own record anyway.

So by now you are probably wondering what all this has to do with me, The Welbeck or the Isle of Man.

Cue my tenuous link to fame:

Yes that is my name of the same trophy that Mr H won in both 2000 & 2001 at the annual Manx Harriers Walks, though it has to be said that I don't belong in his league. The winning time (and fastest ever on Manx soil?)in the latter being 1:21:54, almost a staggering 16 minutes quicker than my stroll!

Of course my great chum, Murray Lambden was delighted for him but probably even more so because he was able to regurgitate (if you'll excuse the intended pun) his video of the 2001 finish. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCtGtSsZ5TU#at=46

Actually the fact that Murray, webmaster of manxathletics.com has filmed Rob Heffernan chundering is the other thing we have in common ;)

And Finally ............

As usual I have failed with my hoped for Blog schedule and only now am I making my promised Manx Telecom Parish Walk report 13 days after the event.

The 85 mile race itself certainly lived up to expectations and as predicted, at the forefront were Jock Waddington, Vinny Lynch, me and Richard Gerrard, the latterly competing despite injuring his back at work only a few days before the start.

Less expected was the presence of a young chap called, David Mapp who is the musical director of Onchan Silver Band and leading them this morning at Tynwald Day. He has the makings of a decent technique but the rest of us were wondering whether could could possibly maintain his challenge.

However, fortunately he also seems to possess knowledge of his own ability and he decided to ease off in the approach to Arbory but he went on to finish 5th in an excellent time, so he certainly looks to be one to watch for the future.

Four times winner, Jock Waddington was the next man to slip back at Ballakillowey on the ascent towards the infamous Sloc, yet despite trying hard not to hit the front too early, that was exactly where I found myself when Richard had to make a toilet stop and Vinny was struggling with his dodgy ankle.

I just allowed gravity to take me to Peel but I think both of my opponents had to work quite hard to catch me and I think that extra effort they'd put in told over the next 30 miles or so.

It was a real test of discipline all the way up the N.W. coast to stay tucked in behind them as I was raring to go, though also keen not to make a repeat of the previous year when I had led and been a target for so long.

The other major difference being hydration. On this occasion, I made certain that I began drinking before the gun was fired and continued, thus ensuring my problems with my stomach would be minimal.

However, by Andreas with thirty miles to go, my patience was exhausted and instead of slowing down all the time, to sit in third place, I just continued and made my move. This was far earlier than I'd envisaged but it just felt right and my lead slowly but surely extended through Lezayre, Ramsey & Maughold, where at Corony after the tough climbs at Ballajora & Hibernian, I'd built up a gap of 6 minutes.

It was at this juncture, that with a couple of blisters to help out, for the first time, I began to lose a little focus and was uninterested in maintaining the pace I'd initiated despite the urgings of my support team, Graham & Martin Young.

I was to be jolted out of my reverie by two factors. Having thought I had a sizeable lead, I had to stop at Lonan with 6 miles to complete because Graham was unable to start my rear light (it is compulsory to be illuminated after 10pm) and the strapping had become tangled in the car. We must have dropped 90 seconds and as I descended back towards the main road, the next thing I saw was Richard Gerrard walking towards me.

There was no possibility I could now be 6 minutes ahead and indeed Manx radio reported it as being 4.5 minutes at the church. However, that was before our bungled pit stop.

I was angry that I hadn't been kept informed and I was terrified that once again I was going to fall short. This feeling was exacerbated by the fact that we still hadn't got my lights on correctly and they were bouncing around all over the place.

The adrenalin surged through my blood supply and once again, I was really moving, though still very fearful that my lamps would come off or I would trip up. I was also mindful of the presence of the judges and I was much more cautious than I could have been on the long descent at Whitebridge.

Anyone who has walked along Douglas Promenade will know that it is full small bumps and large expansion seams, so that was another factor affecting my peace of mind. However, I knew as I approached Broadway that the day would finally be mine.

I had sort of decided not to follow Jock's two handed salute but I didn't have long to decide how I would celebrate. The 'Mikebo' had occurred to me but as I approached the line, I dismissed that as totally corny and all of a sudden I was there.

My hands shot up a la Waddington (but way too late to be cool like he is,) and then totally forgetting that I was nearly 48 years old and had just completed 85 miles, rather than being 26 and not having had to run for 10 seconds, I went for the Usain Thunderbolt. I say, 'Went for' but realised half way down, I was never going to make it, so probably acted in the silliest manner ever witnessed at the War Memorial. But I'd still won.

And won by 6 minutes and 10 seconds, though just a couple of minutes shy of the record.

with thanks to Murray & Ben Lambden for use of the picture.

Also huge congratulations to Janice Quirk who won the Ladies race in the third fastest time ever, despite being absent from the the Parish Walk since 2009.

Richard Gerrard came second and Jock Waddington regrouped to overtake Vinny for third place.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for all the messages of support, cards, e-mails and well wishes in the street. It has made me feel very humble.

The brouhaha that follows around a Parish Walk is quite astounding these days as is the media coverage on Island and even in some cases a little further afield.

However, just to make sure I stay feeling humble and don't become even more big headed, I received an e-mail from a local company yesterday asking me if I like to advertise with them and the author became the second Manx girl in three days to ask if I'd done the Parish Walk this year.



This was the front page of our local newspaper, the following Monday and it was all over the airwaves on the radio news of all the stations. There must have been quite a party under the rock at Eary Cushlin that I mentioned in my last post.

Parish Walk 2013

Well Parish Walk time is here again. Saturday will see 1500 hopeful souls depart the N.S.C. at 8am attempting to complete the 85 miles or at least part of it. Once again the weather looks like being a little mixed to say the least but I'm sure there will still be plenty of smiles on offer. It isn't too bad walking in grim conditions but I always pity the officials of whom there are so many and without whom there would be no race.

This is a 'Thank you' in advance and I do hope you are dressed for anything.

My chances? They haven't been overly helped by contracting a chest infection and the fact that we have been so busy this last few weeks due to being short staffed in the kitchen but I remain confident that I will at least be able to challenge once again.

It looks like there are four of us with a realistic chance. Out of four times winner Jock Waddington, last year's joint champions, Vinny Lynch & Richard Gerrard, I think the latter man has the best chance if I don't prevail.



Best of luck to all the competitors and I'll let the off-Island blogophiles know what happened afterwards (as you'd have to live under a rock at Eary Cushlin not to find out if you live here.

Walkablog Heads North, Well South Actually, From North. Oh just read it ;)

What a glorious couple of weeks of weather we've just had! Lets hope that will be business as usual as opposed to what we have today!

We have been busy and a little short staffed in the kitchen, so that's my excuse for my lack of postings over the last month. Many apologies, blogophiles.

To explain the silly title, we caught the Manx Electric Railway to Ballaglass Glen on Sunday (£12.45 per person return,) thanks to Faye, the daughter of our friends Paul & Marie who saved us from the embarrassment of missing the train (just)and then we walked back to Laxey.

A word of warning to anyone using this form of transport because even though the weather was scorching (Well that's a bit of Manx exaggeration but about as hot as it gets here,) we were still frozen on the outside carriage even in jumpers.

The journey wends its way along the coast of Onchan, Groudle, and then into the heart of Laxey before continuing through Bulghan, Dhoon, Glen Mona and finally to our destination which is a little away from the main road, although it can be reached by car.

Ballaglass is very pretty but also a little shady, so we kept on the jumpers. It is often used by Gorge Walkers www.adventurousexperiences.com

After crossing the road, we then followed the Raad ny Foillan (Way of the Gull. Manx Coastal Path) past the rock pool (great to take the kids if they like al fresco swimming and jumping in) by the side of the 'Bellite' factory that never was and out to Port Cornaa.

We stopped and sat in the sunshine, eating our picnic, watching BBQers and swimmers (well one brave soul anyway.) I certainly have never seen so many people there, though beware because there are no toilets. The whole area is part of the Barony Estate.

From there, we went back inland, about two miles to Dhoon Glen where there is a cafe outside which we enjoyed a well earned cup of tea and used the public lavatory facilities. On this occasion, we didn't walk down to see the waterfall but continued up the Ballaragh Road another couple of miles into Laxey.

This section of the Raad ny Foillan isn't really very coastal but still extremely pleasant, though I would warn anyone not to sure footed to be careful on the descent to Old Laxey as it is very steep and rocky. Personally, I was a little disappointed that they had changed the route slightly and you no longer had to complete the final few metres with use of a rope.

We then enjoyed a couple of pints of Bosun Bitter, brewed on premises at the Shore Hotel before finishing our walk another mile or so along the riverside and up to the MER station.

A Good Sound Walk

I think somewhere burrowed in the annals of this blog is a walk around the Meayll Peninsula. Well, here's another one! However, it isn't quite the same because as it had been raining quite heavily in the days previous to our visit, we decided to stick to the roads.

If you walk past the 'Bay Hotel,' just to the right is a small very steep lane up to a couple of private homes that once were guest houses.



You find yourself on the Darrag Road which is basically an initially sharply contoured single track, approximately a mile long which passes Ballaman, formerly owned by racing driver, Nigel Mansell and eventually joins the road to the Sound just below Cregneash.

I don't think I've ever seen quite so many seals on Kitterland (which is a further mile down to the Cafe)but unfortunately, the camera on my phone was quite good enough to pick them out in an unblurry fashion.

On our way back, we continued up past Cregneash (the thatched village preserved as it was in the first half of the last century as a working museum and on to the Howe.



We then turned on to the Glen Chas Road which leads both to the Chasms and also to Port St Mary. 'The Bay View Pub' has fallen on hard times in recent years but luckily, it has been taken over and the Landlord is investing time and money on refurbishment and also fortunately, the beer garden with the best view on the Island.

We arrived at just at the best part of the day for a swift one after our exercise but ended up missing about three buses before could tear ourselves away home.

Harry Birthday Happy & Christopher

Who stole the last two years?

It was my life and I want it back!



Yes incredibly, it's two years since Happy Monster and Christopher were born and it's hard to reconcile this bouncing bundle of trouble and fun with the tiny bag of bones that was brought into this World.

(I look more tired than Lucy here. Don't know what my excuse was ;))

During a recent trip to the Curraghs Wildlife Park, he didn't show an ounce of enthusiasm for the animals. He loved the pathways and slopes though.



Of course, he probably wouldn't be with us now if it wasn't for the role played by Christopher, his twin brother. So lets remember him with thanks.

What a Difference a Year Makes

http://michaelswelbeckblog.blogspot.com/2012/03/dont-mention-mint-sauce.html



That was March 2012. Note the sunglasses, the tee-shirts and if you're feeling exceptionally brave you could go look at the whole blog posting and see my hairy uncovered legs. (I seem to struggle with the 'Blogger link button, so I'm afraid you'll have to copy & paste)



This is March 2013! And in Douglas, we have the best of it. Below is a picture of Glen Maye, complete with abandoned car, with thanks to Pete Bradley who posted on Facebook.



Looking on the bright side, at least we're getting this now instead of July/August like last year

New Website, News & Events, Old Blog

The Welbeck Website will be totally revamped and replaced shortly and therefore my blog and the latest news etc. will be split, so that the news section will contain information relevant to the business while I continue to waffle about rubbish that I hope one or two of you will find interesting.

Although much of the time, I do wonder occasionally whether there is actually anyone out there beside my Indian friends whose comments I think are trying to boost the ratings of some far flung website rather than illuminate my witterings with any relevance.

However, since I opened with 'Toolbox takes a holiday' in 2010 (brilliant irony that this was posted on April Fools Day, unintentionally I might add,)according to the blogger.com stats I've had nearly 17,000 page views, though we've never again seen the toolbox

***

When considering when to come to the Island and of course the Welbeck Hotel and Restaurant, it may be an idea to check the events happening over that period.

On the IOM Government website there is a comprehensive method of checking for things of interest to you.

www.visitisleofman.com

I have also reproduced some of the headline 'What's On' features until the end of April.

IOM Student Festival of Sport 21-24 March

J M Nicholson Art Exhibition opens 23 March

Rush Hour on the Railways 29 March -2nd April

Easter Festival of Running 29-31 March

Egg Rolling at Cregneash 8 April

CAMRA Real Ale Of Man Beer Festival 4-6th April

Murder Mystery on the Railway 12-13 April

Cycling Sportive TT Course 20 April

Sara Killey 50k Walk 21 April

Pie in the Sky (stargazing and supper) 26-27 April TBC

The Guild * (Prom Parking) 26 April - 4 May

MMRC Manx Classic Cars Sprint and Hillclimb* 25-27 April

Welbeck Wednesdays

For the month of March, we are offering a main course, sweet and coffee for £14.00 every Wednesday.

Ring now and book your table!

Of course, we are still open every other day for breakfast from 07:15 to 09:30 (10:00 weekends,)

Lunch Monday to Friday 12:00 to 14:00 www.welbeckhotel.com/sampleweekday.html">

Sunday Lunch 12:30 to 14:30 www.welbeckhotel.com/samplesunday.html">

Dinner daily from 18:30 to 21:30 every night of the week.



Sample Menu Only

The Following is our Inclusive 'Table D'Hôte three-course menu (including starter, main course, sweet & coffee or food to the value of £22.00) priced at £22.00 plus supplements where applicable and also our individually priced 'A la Carte' menu.

Starters

Cream Cauliflower Soup garnished with Crispy Smoked Bacon - £4.75

Asparagus wrapped in Proscuitto with Tarragon Dressing- £4.75

Manx Queenies with Garlic and Bacon - £6.25 (tdh £1.50 extra)

Melon Welbeck - £4.75

Deep Fried Brie with Summer Fruits Coulis - £4.75

Smoked Salmon Salad - £4.75

Manx Mushrooms with Garlic Stilton - £4.75

Chicken Liver Pâté - £4.75

Manx Kipper Pâté - £4.75

Prawn Cocktail - £6.25 (tdh £1.50 extra)

Main Course

Roast Manx Chicken with Garlic & Herbs - £14.00

Grilled Manx Spring Lamb Cutlets - £14.00

Escalope of Local Beef in a Manx Whisky and Cream Sauce - £14.00

Seared Venison Loin served on Croutons with Chicken Liver Pâté - £16.00 (£2.00 extra)

Pork Steak in Breadcrumbs stuffed with Manx Cranberry Druidale Cheese - £14.00

Cold Meat Salad - £14.00

Pan Fried Duck Breast with Toasted Almonds & Sherry Jus - £14.00

Steamed Fillet of Sea Bass with Ginger, Spring Onions, Garlic and a Dash of Thai Fish Sauce - £14.00

Fillet of Plaice with stuffed with Spinach & Mushrooms in a White Wine Sauce - £14.00

Deep Fried Fillet of Smoked Haddock in Crispy Batter - £14.00

Baked Salmon Fillet with Honey and Grain Mustard Glaze - £14.00

V Peppers stuffed with Rice & Gratinated Cheese Sauce -£12.00 (tdh -£2.00)

V Penne alla Vegetariana - £12.00 (tdh -£2.00)

V Manx Mushrooms en Croute - £12.00 (tdh -£2.00)

10oz Manx Sirloin Steak - £17.00 (tdh 3.00 extra)

8oz Manx Fillet Steak - £18.00 (tdh £4.00 extra)

Pepper Sauce - £2.50

All of the above served with Potatoes & Vegetables

(Salad or Chips by request)

Please ask to see our Dessert & Coffee Menu

Fabulous New Activities on the Isle of Man

The demographic of the visitors to the Isle of Man (and of course the Welbeck Hotel & Restaurant) has evolved over the years and although we still have the beautiful beaches, the transport network and all the Manx National Heritage sites, not to mention the fabulous scenery, there is no doubt that many of today's holidaymakers want to interact with our surroundings.

Therefore, over the last few years, several new enterprises have sprung up hoping to tap into the market, so the intention of this blog is to make you aware of more of the possibilities that a trip to the Isle of Man can offer.

www.adventurousexperiences.com/ Adventurous Experiences have been around quite some time now and provide Sea Kayaking, Gorge Scrambling, Coasteering, Hill Navigation & Rock Climbing. I can personally vouch for the kayaking and the boats are really excellent and not just standard tourist fat unsinkable things.

Gorge Scrambling

At South Barrule there are already a series of Mountain Bike Trails but opening this May is a tree climbing course with zip wire and pedal karts. Initially it will be mainly for children but they are currently constructing some more challenging sets for older teenagers and adults.

Ape Mann Adventure Park

www.facebook.com/pages/Ape-Mann-Adventure-Park/147791105369335

Unfortunately, their website is only being built at the moment but above is a Facebook page that has plenty of photographs.

Another new company is running Segway Tours. I reckon Irene & I will have to review this one for another blog



http://www.segwaypt.im/

More in a slightly different vein another time.

Latest News from The Welbeck

Here at the Welbeck Hotel & Restaurant, we still have vacancies for this weekend and indeed all dates up to and including Easter.

This weekend sees the return of the Irish Junior Racewalking Squad. The branch of athletics is on a high at the moment in Ireland following their excellent showing at the Olympics with Robbie Heffernan coming so close to bronze in the men's 50k. Many of their current stars including RH and also World Championship silver medallists, Gillian O'Sullivan & Olive Loughnane raced here in the not too distant past, so their coach, Michael Lane will be hoping that some of these young athletes will be the next crop of future Olympians.

www.manxharriers.com

They will also be hoping to remove some silverware from the Isle of Man at Saturday's Ascot Hotel sponsored Manx Open Walks.

There is a sporting occasion that begins the following Friday too but it couldn't be more different than this week's fare. The B.D.O. Isle of Man Darts Festival with some well known stars including 'The Count' Ted Hankey and a strong Dutch contingent comes to the Villa Marina. For a full preview, see:

http://www.bdodarts.com/1740/11-02-2012/27th_Isle_of_Man_Darts_Festival_March_9th_to_11th_Preview

On 23rd March, I went to Ramsey for my fourth weekend in a row, this time to watch our son Terence and his friend (Tom & Terry you heard it hear first ;)) play in aid of the Northern Lights Studio Project.

More Sunshine - Get Here Quick!

The chill from last week remains but fortunately, we saw the last of the Siberian wind on Friday and ever since, we've been blessed with some beautiful weather with pleasant breezes.

Indeed, Sunday was so sunny, it even induced Mrs. George to come out of hibernation and we set out for Douglas Head to walk the short Marine Drive loop.

There was this black swan in the harbour.

We decided to take the lighthouse route as I needed the toilet and the facility by Battery Pier is one of the few that you do not have to be prepared with a twenty pence piece to use these days.

As we climbed the steps it is now difficult to imagine that many years ago, this area would was a developed hive of tourist activity during the summer. There was once a funicular railway, leading to all kinds of amusements, including rides and even a tower of which they found the foundations whilst renovations were being carried out at Manx Radio.

Photograph by David Lloyd-Jones

There was the Douglas Head Hotel which has now been extended and converted to apartments and all that remains to give a clue to its former usage is the outdoor stage and the Great Union Camera Obscura which was restored a few years ago and is now run by volunteers and opened at weekends during the season.

Old photographs can be see on the http://www.imuseum.im/collections/RelatedPlaces.mth?entryid=2888646

Of further interest to historians and Manx railway enthusiasts is the entrance to Marine Drive where there was an electric tramline that ran to Port Soderick which must have been a truly spectacular journey.



There was a toll keeper's house on the left hand side.

It is one of my favourite walks and I was too busy enjoying it to take any more pictures and of course I had to work hard to keep up with the athlete. As Irene was making her comeback, we turned off at Keristal instead of carrying on towards Port Soderick and she was delighted to see some little black lambs.

We passed the Nunnery, back into Douglas ready for a coffee and luckily we noticed that Dave Dentith had re-opened and re-named MASH, the Quayside Coffee House & Bistro. It was fabulous to be able to sit in the sunshine sipping my latte.



Finally, before heading home, we visited Douglas Market. Originally, the site also included the area that is now the Manx Legion Club and the current building was designed for selling fish. Unfortunately, it has seen busier times, so they are presently inviting ideas for its future use whilst inviting different stallholders to see if they can generate interest.
Another stunning picture by David Lloyd-Jones
www.facebook.com/ManxArtisanMarket?group_id=0"



Irene bought a 'Supremes' vinyl album, brand new for only £1.99. I think her plan is to storm DJ's hutch at the 'Courthouse' nightclub (just discovered they're not called discos any more,) tie up the purveyors of the headache material they were playing the other night until they confess they have been converted and promise they WILL play at least one Motown set per hour without threatening to get their big big mates on her ;) OOps but that's a different story :)

Don't forget, The Welbeck Hotel Restaurant is open for breakfast,lunch and dinner. Pop over and stay or book in your friends from across. We have accommodation available from now until the end of May and still plenty of dates in the summer.

Sunday Morning Sunshine

Douglas Bay

I missed my usual Saturday morning walk with my friends and Parish Walk rivals this week as we had spent Friday night in Ramsey to celebrate our wedding anniversary but by the time dawn broke on Sunday, I was feeling very lucky.

The miserable drizzle and strong wind had given way to a truly beautiful morning and therefore, I even built in a couple of quick stops to take photographs and one of the major advantages of living in the Isle of Man is that you .

Looking towards Douglas from the middle of nowhere, you can make out Chibanagh Plantation in the background

Unfortunately, I am not technically adept enough to overlay my route onto a map, so a brief description will have to suffice. I headed off down Tromode Road, turned on to Ballafletcher, past the Hospital on to the Mount Rule Road all the way though into Crosby. I then went up past Ellerslie Depot and the Manx Language Centre on the climb up to the and over the crossroads with the Foxdale Road. At St. Marks, I followed the signs for Ballasalla but then took a left towards the Blackboards. After a brief flirt with the main route to the Airport, I then used the Old Castletown Road before taking the right towards Port Soderick Station, Marine Drive, Douglas Head and then back home. 35 kilometres or nearly 22 miles in old money.

A rare cloud (well rare for last Sunday morning anyway) floats on the summit of South Barrule

Welbeck Hotel & Restaurant

Isle of Man & The Welbeck Open for Business

Since the beginning of time, one of the problems facing the Isle of Man hospitality industry has been trying to extend the season beyond a few short summer months.

Although it has been longer in the last few years than in the tourism boom years, we have never been able to tap into the ready winter market of the likes of the Lake District in North West England where they seem to be busy in all seasons.

One reason is that all the Manx Heritage attractions and railways shut down at the beginning of November but heartening news is that almost everything is now open for business for 2013.

During a trip to Laxey yesterday to feed and attempt to tire out our Happy (one of our grandsons for my newer blog readers,) we stopped in the car park by the Lady Isabella and the lights were on at the turnstile and shop.

On our subsequent jaunt down to the promenade, it has to be said that it perhaps wasn't the most pleasant welcome the Manx weather has ever given its visitors but we did enjoy the experience.

By the way, the Welbeck Hotel, Apartments & Restaurant is also awaiting your patronage, so we'll hope to see you sooner rather than later.

Golden Girls

Back in 2007 when we first started opening for weekday lunch here at the Welbeck Hotel Restaurant, amongst our first customers was Sylvia Davies and her delightful group of friends.

And I'm pleased to report that they are still regular visitors, yesterday indeed being Sylvia's birthday.

You can be sure that during their visit, there will be plenty of laughter, not to mention lively banter and a liberal dollop of gossip.

Lets hope they continue to celebrate occasions like yesterday, for many years to come.

Survey Draw Winners

Oops! Quick on the draw we're not and once again we let a little too much time elapse, beyond the promised quarterly prize announcement.

The good news is that we've picked two winners instead of one, so congratulations to Mr M. Cummings and Mr & Mrs Bill & Joan O'Hara who have won two free nights at the Welbeck.

All they had to do was to fill in the survey form which we leave in all the rooms.

Sylvia Davies was kind enough to pull the lucky winners' forms out of the sack.

A Proper Twit

I'm not sure whether this is a good thing but I've finally succumbed to the final frontier of social media.

In the ten years ago since I relented and acquired my first mobile phone (of which I was never going to have one,) I now have a laptop, a Sony Xperia (Smart phone for those King Canutes amongst you bravely clinging to your Luddite ways) joined Facebook and finally, after swearing I wouldn't ever join the millions of people posting inane minutae, I have started using the 'Twitter' account I set up about a year ago.

Apparently, it's all about raising the profile of your website and maintaining presence on the 'Google', search rankings etc. blah, blah.

Anyway, now I'm a proper Twit, Twitterer Tweeter or whatever it is I am (no Dave not what you were thinking), I was wondering if you would be so good as to follow me and I'll promise to do my best not to stoop to such prattle as telling you I'm off to the loo or about to have a cup of coffee.

The aspect that I'm struggling with most is as many of my regular blog readers would probably attest to is that it's a real challenge for me to condense my thoughts into 140 characters and therefore, what you'd think should take me less than a couple of minutes, by the time I've edited, re-written and abbreviated, it has taken ages.

Watch this space. Sooner or later I may have to descend into another of my pet hates, the dreaded 'Text speak!'

CU L8ta

Chairlift to Heaven Doomed to Hell

Today's blog could be re-titled, 'Where am I?' and you start with 100 points and lose them as you scroll down the page but it would be a bit unfair on the occasional visitors to the Island.

The other morning, it was reported on Manx Radio that the Shoprite Group had received planning permission to demolish the derelict chairlift that ran from behind Little Switzerland to the Victoria Road Business Park which was once Cunninghams Camp.

For those of you that are unaware, the Isle of Man had holiday camps long before Billy & Fred developed Butlins or Pontins. Therefore, chum/rival Dave & I decided to go and take a look before it disappeared forever.

It certainly brought back memories for me because the last time I shinnied up the lamp post and over the wall must have been circa 1980 as a naughty schoolboy (not much changed I hear you say), only twelve years after it carried its last passengers and as you can see it really has deteriorated.

Looking at it now, it's really quite hard to imagine it it carrying passengers but here's an old photograph:

And finally, a photograph of the entrance. I had always assumed that the image above was the top of the lift but in fact it is about 75m away and the building was just a toilet block. (There are also conveniences concealed in the bottom building.

Credit Peter Killey www.manxscenes.com