Kirk Michael and the Northern Plain

This is an aerial view of the village of Kirk Michael and the flat Northern Plain beyond. Easily seen is the route of the now disused railway line from Douglas to Ramsey and the main road from Peel.This road and the one from Douglas merge on the outskirts of the village . The road from Douglas is part of the TT Course which the racers take at full speed through the village itself. Note the hundreds of small fields, all enclosed by hedges, a hangover from the days when crofters and farmers owned or rented a small piece of land. The hedges also protected the crops from the the windy conditions that the Island often experiences. As this area consists mostly of sand and gravel, the coast line is subject to erosion by the sea and many feet are lost each year. The Isle of Man must be a different shape as to what it was many years ago and of course the Northern Plain is still in a state of continuous change . Note where some of the hedges end right on the edge of the sand ckiffs....the rest has been lost to the sea,

An interesing point is that the majority of the the hedges on the Island are of the traditional stone and turf construction. A stone inner core was covered with turf. Subsequent growth of plants and gorse on the hedges made them virtually indestructible. On higher ground, land division was achieved by the construction of dry stone walls, using flat slate stones dug out of small quarries along the route of the wall. These walls are still standing after 200-300 years .