Laxey

The Lady Isabella, Agneash and the old town.

 

Monday 5th March 2012

 

We started from the parking area near Brown's Cafe in Laxey and walked up the road towards "The Lady Isabella" - the great Laxey water wheel which used to pump water from the mines further up the valley.  I thought we would continue up the road but Trevor wanted to walk past the wheel which is now just a tourist attraction.  The tourist site is closed during the winter season and we had to climb over the turnstiles which were locked with a stout chain.  There were a couple of workmen busy on renovations.  They were working on the spiral steps which lead up to the viewing platform above the wheel.  I wondered whether we would get into trouble - but the men just said hello and carried on with their work as though four trespassing hikers and a couple of dogs were an everyday occurrence.

If you are interested, here is a link to a contemporary report on the opening of the wheel in 1954.   http://www.isle-of-man.com/manxnotebook/iln/n141054.htm

 

I couldn't get a dog to oblige so I made Tim stand next to this huge bit of machinery to indicate the size.  He says is is a connecting rod but according to one of my books it is a crank.  Probably just two different names for the same thing.  Apparently two were ordered but only one was used and this one has been lying around for over 150 years.

We continued up the mines trial, climbing over a few fences because the gates were locked, until we came to the ruins of the machine houses, which looked rather picturesque perched on the steep sides of the glen.

The path led to some steps up towards the road and, at the top of the steps, I noticed a muddy little path leading up the hill in the right direction.  It looked as though it was used as an illegal access route to the mines trail.  With the help of a convenient rowan tree, I managed to scramble up the bank and we picked our way up the rather steep, slippery path until we reached the road.  Tim joked that we would be able to save a few pounds if we used that route to take visitors to the wheel . . . but they would need to be very agile visitors.

 

The road leads up to Agneash, a little hamlet up in the hills.  I read a bit about Agneash and found a report by the Manx Natural History and Antiquarian Society which visited Agneash in 1939. "The Society broke new ground on the 18th May, 1939, when it visited Agneash and Snaefell Glen district, under the leadership of Mr James Mylchreest, a Lonan man, well familiar with the area.  The party met at Agneash. The leader said it was formerly known as Hegness, but in his early days it was popularly known as "The City.""  You can see from the photo below that "The City" seems be an exceptionally inappropriate name for Agneash - perhaps they were being sarcastic.

In the foreground of the photo of Agneash is Glen Drink.  There was an amusing story in http://www.isle-of-man.com/manxnotebook/fulltext/jk1874/index.htm 1874.  "On the right hand, close below, is the Agnaish stream, and near to a building connected with the mine a small glen is observed, called Glen Drink, which the inhabitants say was formerly a favourite resort of the fairies. About fifty years ago a Primitive Methodist minister began to hold a service every other Sunday in a private house in the glen, and at this the fairies, not admiring Dissent, appear to have taken umbrage, for they then departed, and have not since revisited the neighbourhood."  The association with fairies is confirmed by Peter J. Hulme who gives the origin of the name as "Glen Drink (Mx) = 'The Glen of Dancing' (of the fairies??)

 

From Agneash there was a bit more uphill walking along footpaths through farms and then we headed down the Ballaragh Road towards Laxey.  If you can bear any more history, you might like to read the chapter on Laxey from Leech's Guide of 1861  http://www.isle-of-man.com/manxnotebook/fulltext/lg1861/ch11.htm

 

The photo below shows the inner harbour and part of the old town near the shore.  

We walked along a short section of footpath to the north of the river which leads to Laxey Head and the outer wall of the harbour.  I have never walked along there before and it was interesting to see Laxey from a different angle.

 

After a tea break in the warm sun on the sheltered hillside we climbed down the step path to the harbour wall.

It was worth the effort to see Laxey from the east with threatening clouds looming overhead.  Luckily they blew away and we had a dry end to the walk.

Before we got back to the old town, the sun was out again and I took one last photo of the river with the boats parked alongside.  And then it was uphill again - along rather muddy footpaths by the river - until we crossed the railway line into "new" Laxey and returned to the cars.