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Groudle Glen
The little Groudle river forms the northern boundary of Onchan parish. For the last mile and a half of its journey to the sea it runs through a wooded glen to which the public have access. The upper portion is known as Molly Quirk's glen and is said to be named after a wealthy heiress who was murdered there. The lower section from the Whitebridge to the sea is referred to as Groudle Glen.
The Groudle Hotel was opened in 1893 to greet the first passengers on the new electric tramway which ran along the coast from Douglas. The natural glen was transformed into a tourist attraction by Richard Maltby Broadbent and opened as 'The Fern Glen of the Isle of Man', paths and rustic bridges were constructed, and in 1896 a miniature steam railway was built. This ran from Lhen Coan through the glen and out to the headland overlooking the sea where a small zoo had been set up. One of the main attractions were the sea lions, which were kept in an inlet of the sea, but there were also polar bears and other animals. After falling into decay after the war years, the line has been reinstated by a group of railway enthusiasts, working in their spare time, and it is still possible to take a trip, drawn by the original steam locomotive "Sea Lion", past Lime Kiln Halt, to the end of the line at Sea Lion Rocks.
The quaint little water wheel in the glen was built to pump water up to the hotel and was later used to generate electricity for decorative lighting.
