Tuesday, 17th September 2019 The day starts with a leisurely buffet breakfast at the hotel. At 10:00 we gather in the hotel lounge for the brief walk down to the promenade. John, our coach driver, meets us and takes us the short distance along the promenade to the Douglas Electric Tram station. The 10:40 tram takes us to Laxey. At Laxey we change trams . . . . . to travel on the branch line up to the top of Snaefell. Snaefell is the highest spot on the Isle of Man. And on a clear day you can see England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Today is bright and sunny, but at the top it is cold and very windy. Just below the summit is another of the roads that the TT races travel along. After an hour at the top of Snaefell (most of it spent queuing to buy a coffee in the café) we catch a tram back down to Laxey. The route down is not electric powered. It is powered by gravity and as a consequence of this it is a very loud, squeaky journey as the brakes grip the central rail. At Laxey we visit Isobel Wheel. Historically the wheel, which is water powered, was used to pump water from the Laxey mine. The mine, now disused, but visitable, was a lead mine. A steep spiral staircase is used to access the platform at the top. Walking back into the village of Laxey, we pass by the […]