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For more info -
or to support us,
please get in touch:
prowl@manx.net
PROWL, 1 Castle Street,
Castletown, IM9 1LF
Or call Ian on:
01624 837 059
to be made official
The following can be found at Langness: Many species of native and migrant birds and butterflies; a rich profusion of Spring flowers; the Island's largest salt marsh; a unique grasshopper; grey seals basking on the rocks; unusual rock formations and the 'pudding stone' arches; an ancient fort and the Herring Tower; mine workings and WWII defences. Access to these important sites and our natural heritage should be preserved for all.
For the sake of
people unfamiliar with the background of the recent
court cases, perhaps we could offer a brief history:
From the very beginning, we saw the exclusion of the public from one section of the coastal path as being the thin end of the wedge, and asked the question ‘What will happen next?’ If no-one was going to challenge one landowner’s right to close one section, what would this landowner – or a future landowner, or a neighbouring landowner – do next?
From the very beginning, we saw the exclusion of the public from one section of the coastal path as being the thin end of the wedge, and asked the question ‘What will happen next?’ If no-one was going to challenge one landowner’s right to close one section, what would this landowner – or a future landowner, or a neighbouring landowner – do next?
First we
accumulated evidence of public use of the circular
coastal route south of the car park – never just part of
it but all of it. Then we found evidence of public use
of the lighthouse road, and the routes to Dreswick
Harbour, Port Bravag and Langness Point. That done, we
moved on to the various routes meeting at the Herring
Tower, and then the paths radiating north and eastwards
from the car park. And finally, to complete the set of
the peninsular’s paths, we turned our attention to the
coastal paths north of the car park – the eastern route
to Golf Links Hotel/ Fort Island and the western
route to Hango Hill - and the linking route from the
ruin of Langness Farmhouse.
The Department of Transport held the Langness Peninsular Inquiry - not the Clarkson Lighthouse Holiday Home Inquiry, but while the media remained firmly fixated on the celebrity angle we tried to avoid it wherever possible, and got quietly on with the business of amassing evidence of public use ‘as of right’, and encouraging people to tell their own personal stories to the Inquiry Inspector.
When the inquiry began, there were no formal rights of way on Langness. You could drive to the car park, but there were no designated rights of way to allow you to go any further on foot. There were even question marks over the public’s right to drive along the road to the car park!
Previous Highways Authorities and Attorneys General had known that a problem existed, but the multiplicity of landowners and tenants had meant it had never been quite the right time to deal with it. When the Inquiry’s report was published, six miles of Rights of Way were found to have been created around and across the peninsular, including every one of the sections put forward by PRoWL.
The section behind the wire was important, and included the Island’s southernmost point/ the main seal colony/ the military installations/ the Mariners’ Graveyard and the fog horn, and we were very pleased that the Inspector found the case proved that there had been a long-established public footpath running through it. Nevertheless, this section of path represents only 4% of the network approved by the Inquiry. Isn’t it about time the media allowed the public to know the other 96% of our achievement?
The red dots on this simplified map show the main routes approved by the Inspector, at long last giving Langness its rightful place on the Manx Coastal Footpath.
If we had allowed one closure to go unchallenged, there is every chance that the extent of the public exclusion would have spread. We would never have forgiven ourselves for letting it happen. It was better to be smart before the event. It was better to put the matter on a sound legal basis. It was better to involve a neutral expert to examine the claims and counter claims. Reporters were fond of asking us whether we would accept the Inquiry’s findings, and were always told that we would, come what may. A year after the Report found in favour of six miles of Rights of Way on the Langness Peninsular, it’s time for others to do the same.
The Department of Transport held the Langness Peninsular Inquiry - not the Clarkson Lighthouse Holiday Home Inquiry, but while the media remained firmly fixated on the celebrity angle we tried to avoid it wherever possible, and got quietly on with the business of amassing evidence of public use ‘as of right’, and encouraging people to tell their own personal stories to the Inquiry Inspector.
When the inquiry began, there were no formal rights of way on Langness. You could drive to the car park, but there were no designated rights of way to allow you to go any further on foot. There were even question marks over the public’s right to drive along the road to the car park!
Previous Highways Authorities and Attorneys General had known that a problem existed, but the multiplicity of landowners and tenants had meant it had never been quite the right time to deal with it. When the Inquiry’s report was published, six miles of Rights of Way were found to have been created around and across the peninsular, including every one of the sections put forward by PRoWL.
The section behind the wire was important, and included the Island’s southernmost point/ the main seal colony/ the military installations/ the Mariners’ Graveyard and the fog horn, and we were very pleased that the Inspector found the case proved that there had been a long-established public footpath running through it. Nevertheless, this section of path represents only 4% of the network approved by the Inquiry. Isn’t it about time the media allowed the public to know the other 96% of our achievement?
The red dots on this simplified map show the main routes approved by the Inspector, at long last giving Langness its rightful place on the Manx Coastal Footpath.
If we had allowed one closure to go unchallenged, there is every chance that the extent of the public exclusion would have spread. We would never have forgiven ourselves for letting it happen. It was better to be smart before the event. It was better to put the matter on a sound legal basis. It was better to involve a neutral expert to examine the claims and counter claims. Reporters were fond of asking us whether we would accept the Inquiry’s findings, and were always told that we would, come what may. A year after the Report found in favour of six miles of Rights of Way on the Langness Peninsular, it’s time for others to do the same.
A brief history of Langness
Langness and St.
Michael's Isle, the latter now attached to the
peninsula by a narrow causeway, has been inhabited and
used by Manx
people since our prehistory.
During the late Dark and early Medieval Ages Langness, meaning "Long Point", saw heavier use by the Celtic-Norse inhabitants of the area.
In the 12th Century, Langness was traversed by the first congregations of the Chapel built on St Michael's Isle to replace the original Keeill. Until the 19th Century, the attached burial ground was used by the local Catholic community and for the burial of those who's lives had been claimed by the sea.
The defensive position of Langness meant that the land here was often fortified. The earliest recorded battles on the peninsula took place in the 13th Century between the Manx and the Scots.
The Earl of Derby fortified the area in the 17th Century as part of an attempt to protect the Isle of Man from Cromwells Parliamentarians during the English Civil War.
The resulting Fort also served as a lighthouse, however in 1823 the 186 tonne Brig Robert was wrecked at Langness Point with the loss of 43 passengers.
The Herring Tower was built in 1811 by the British Government as a landmark for passing shipping and to carry a flare to guide the herring fleet.
In 1880, the modern lighthouse at Langness Point was built, replacing the light at the old Fort. It is visited monthly for maintenance.
In the early 20th Century, Langness became a Bird Sanctuary in recognition of the peninsula's important wildlife.
During the late Dark and early Medieval Ages Langness, meaning "Long Point", saw heavier use by the Celtic-Norse inhabitants of the area.
In the 12th Century, Langness was traversed by the first congregations of the Chapel built on St Michael's Isle to replace the original Keeill. Until the 19th Century, the attached burial ground was used by the local Catholic community and for the burial of those who's lives had been claimed by the sea.
The defensive position of Langness meant that the land here was often fortified. The earliest recorded battles on the peninsula took place in the 13th Century between the Manx and the Scots.
The Earl of Derby fortified the area in the 17th Century as part of an attempt to protect the Isle of Man from Cromwells Parliamentarians during the English Civil War.
The resulting Fort also served as a lighthouse, however in 1823 the 186 tonne Brig Robert was wrecked at Langness Point with the loss of 43 passengers.
The Herring Tower was built in 1811 by the British Government as a landmark for passing shipping and to carry a flare to guide the herring fleet.
In 1880, the modern lighthouse at Langness Point was built, replacing the light at the old Fort. It is visited monthly for maintenance.
In the early 20th Century, Langness became a Bird Sanctuary in recognition of the peninsula's important wildlife.
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