Howstrake Camp halt

Howstrake Camp Halt
Manx Electric Railway
General information
Coordinates	Pole No. 087-088
Owned by	Isle Of Man Heritage Railways
Platforms	Ground Level
Tracks	Two Running Lines
Construction
Structure type	Stone Shelter
Parking	Non Available
History
Opened	1893

Howstrake Camp is a stop on the Manx Electric Railway on the Isle of Man located at the line's first summit on the climb from the terminus, before descending into the nearby valley.

Useage

It was used in conjunction with the neaby holiday camp from which it gained its name and despite the closure of the camp in 1985 remains open as a functioning request tram stop today. It also retains its original stone-built waiting shelter albeit in a poor state of repair, which has its name painted on the rear wall facing out to sea and bears the legend "Howstrake Holiday Camp Station" along its roofline. The building has been in a poor state of repair for a number of years. Originally the building was erected by and maintained by the owners of the holiday camp.

Locality

The station is something of an oddity, being that the shelter is on the "wrong side" compared to the entrance gates; upon first glance these appear to lead nowhere, but they actually once led to an underground tunnel which was the official entrance to the camp proper, located on the rocks below the tramlines. The area is in a state of decay as can be seen from the dilapidated state of this once-grand entrance area.

Holiday Camp

After Closure

The camp itself sprawled across the hillside overlooking the Groudle Glen Railway on the adjacent hillside and some of the chalets remain today; the area is private property but reasonable views of it can be acheieved from the outer terminus of the aforementioned railway, and some information about the site is also available here. The camp was first developed as a tented village in the late 19th century later becoming the first camp on the island available to both sexes operated by the same company that ran Cunningham's Camp in Douglas some four miles away. During the Second World War the camp was used as a music school by the Royal Air Force before returning to holiday use upon cessation of the hostilities. Latterly it was a seasonal affair and after a fire ripped through the main dining hall in 1985 it closed.

Preceding station	Heritage railways			Following station
Far End		Manx Electric Railway		Groudle Lane

Also

Manx Electric Railway Stations

References

• Mike Goodwyn (1993). Manx Electric. Platform Five. ISBN 9781872524528.
• Keith Pearson (1992). 100 Years Of Manx Electric Railway. Leading Edge. ISBN 0948135387.
• Robert Hendry (1978). Manx Electric Album. Hillside Publishing. ISBN 0950593303.
• Norman Jones (1994). Isle Of Man Tramways. Foxline Publishing. ISBN 1-870119-32-0.

Sources

• Manx Electric Railway Stopping Places (2002) Manx Electric Railway Society

• Island Images: Manx Electric Railway Pages (2003) Jon Wornham

• Official Tourist Department Page (2009) Isle Of Man Heritage Railways