05-Oct-2024
I love the way our Island journeys build up layer by layer. We visited Maughold (which rhymes, by the way, with cackled) two years ago. But that time we didn't go into the church, and we didn't walk the coastline. Today we did both.
St Maughold is an interesting figure from the latter years of the fifth century: "The legend about Maughold or Machalus is that he was an Irish prince who was a pirate. It is said that St Patrick baptised him and then urged him to change his life: as a penance for his previous crimes, Patrick ordered him to abandon himself to God in a wicker boat without oars. Maughold is said to have come ashore on the Isle of Man at the headland known today by his name. He entered into a cave in the mountains there and lived a life of austerity and piety. He was eventually chosen by the local people as their bishop."
The little church named after him is gorgeous. It has been throuh many a renovation, but it's one of the oldest on the Island, and was once a regular destination for pilgrims:
This Pillar Cross dates from about 1300. It used to stand outside the gates, but in the late 1930s, it was moved inside for the sake of conservation
This is the Island's oldest stone-carved example of the three legs of man symbol
You exit the churchyard onto a fabulous stretch of cliff:
Having descended, you can eat your sandwiches on the beach at Port-e-Vullen:
Our route (another one suggested by that handy booklet of Short Walks) took us back to Maughold along the road, and then on to Port Mooar, where you rejoin the coast path:
There was some mining in this area back in the day
After that, you climb the cliff again, go through a field or two, and you're back at the church.
And, because it's the Isle of Man, and they're very good about these things, there are toilets right by the car park, cutely decorated by some of the local children:
All in all, this was a stunning walk. Clifftop, beach, and ecclesiastical history all rolled into one. Ten out of ten.