Quarry Bends is situated adjacent to the 19th Milestone road-side marker on the Snaefell Mountain Course

Snaefell mountain course

Snaefell Mountain Course or Mountain Course is a road-racing circuit used for the Isle of Man TT and Manx Grand Prix Races held in the Isle of Man from 1911 and 1923 respectively. The racing is held on public roads closed for racing by an Act of Tynwald...

 on the primary A3 Castletown to Ramsey

Ramsey, Isle of Man

Ramsey is a town in the north of the Isle of Man. It is the second largest town on the island after Douglas. Its population is 7,309 according to the 2006 census . It has one of the biggest harbours on the island, and has a prominent derelict pier, called the Queen's Pier. It was formerly one of...

, in the parishes of Ballaugh

Ballaugh (parish)

Ballaugh is a parish in the Isle of Man.-Parish:Ballaugh is a mainly agricultural district on the north-western coast of the island. The parish is one of three divisions of the sheading of Michael. The other two are Jurby and Michael District. Ballaugh runs for some three miles along the...

 and Lezayre

Lezayre

Lezayre is a parish in the Sheading of Ayre and lies central and north in the Isle of Man. The parish is bounded by Michael and Ballaugh to the west, Andreas and Bride to the north, the town of Ramsey and the parishes of Lonan and Maughold to the east, and Braddan to the south...

 in the Isle of Man

Isle of Man

The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...

. Quarry Bends is the site of the Curraghs Wildlife Park

Curraghs Wildlife Park

Curraghs Wildlife Park is a Wildlife Park, located in The Curraghs, , an area of wetland in the north-west of the Isle of Man....

, the nearby Gob y Volley Forestry Plantation and Close e Volley Depot, Forestry Division, Isle of Man Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture and the former Ballavolley Quarry.

The enclosures at Close e Volley and Ballavolley are part of the wetlands of the Ballaugh Curragh

Curragh (habitat)

The Curraghs, also known as the Ballaugh Curraghs is an area of wetland in the north-west of the Isle of Man. The area has a rich and varied biodiversity and is also the location of the Curraghs Wildlife Park, a zoo and nature reserve that incorporates the wetlands.- History :During the Ice Age the...

 (Norse

Old Norse

Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....

: Mirescog – Mire of the Turbary

Turbary

Turbary is the term used to describe the ancient right to cut turf, or peat, for fuel on a particular area of bog. The word may also be used to describe the associated piece of bog or peatland and, by extension, the material extracted from the turbary...

) of 1,000 acres (405 ha) in area. The primary A3 road as part of The Long Round the journey from Castletown to Ramsey made by horse-drawn carriers and the A14 Sandygate Road form a boundary of the Curragh's wetland along with the tertiary U7 Old Sulby Road, C29 Old Windmill Road and B9 Ballacrye Road. In 1879 the Manx Northern Railway

Manx Northern Railway

The Manx Northern Railway was the second common carrier railway built in the Isle of Man. It operated as an independent concern only from 1879 to 1905.- History :...

 built a narrow gauge railway from St.John's

St. John's, Isle of Man

The village of St John's is a small village on the A1 Douglas to Peel road in the central valley of the Isle of Man.Tynwald Hill, the original assembly place for the Isle of Man parliament, Tynwald, is the scene of the annual ceremony when the laws of the Isle of Man are proclaimed in English and...

 to Ramsey which ran parallel to the A3 road from Kirk Michael to Sulby Bridge. The railway line crossed a number of minor roads as it passed through the Curraghs at Ballacrye, Ballavolley and Cooilbane. A small railway siding was built in 1882 to serve Clarke's stone quarry at Ballavolley crossing the primary A3 road at Close e Volley, later renamed Quarry Bends, running to a small loading wharf and siding to the main Ramsey to St. John's railway line.

The Curragh's wetlands were traditionally an area for growing hay for grazing including attempts in the 1930's to grow New Zealand flax. The area was purchased in 1963 by the Isle of Man Forestry, Lands and Mines Board and the Curraghs Wildlife Park

Curraghs Wildlife Park

Curraghs Wildlife Park is a Wildlife Park, located in The Curraghs, , an area of wetland in the north-west of the Isle of Man....

 of 211 Acres (85 ha) at Quarry Bends was opened by the Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man

Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man

The Lieutenant Governor is the representative on the Isle of Man of the Lord of Mann . He/she has the power to grant Royal Assent and is styled His Excellency. In recent times the Governor has either been a retired diplomat or senior military officer...

, Sir Ronald Garvey

Ronald Garvey

Sir Ronald Herbert Garvey KCMG KCVO MBE was a colonial administrator.-Career:Garvey joined the colonial service and was appointed Governor of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in 1944. He moved on to be Governor of British Honduras in 1949; there he had to contend with a general strike and the need...

 on 23 July 1965. The Curragh's Wildlife Park is now part of the Isle of Man Department of Community, Culture & Leisure and the park includes from 1992 The Orchid Line

The Orchid Line

The Orchid Line is a multi-gauge miniature railway operating within the Curraghs Wildlife Park in the north of the Isle of Man and is operated by the Manx Model Engineering Society...

, a multi-gauge miniature railway of 1,750 feet in length operated by the Manx Model Engineering Society.

The Quarry Bends complex of bends was part of the Highland Course and Four Inch Course

Four Inch Course

Four-Inch Course is a road-racing circuit first used for the 1908 Tourist Trophy Race for racing automobiles. The races were held on public roads closed for racing by an Act of Tynwald...

 used for the Tourist Trophy

RAC Tourist Trophy

The International Tourist Trophy is an award given by the Royal Automobile Club and awarded semi-annually to the winners of a selected motor racing event each year in the United Kingdom. It was first awarded in 1905 and continues to be awarded to this day, making it the longest lasting trophy in...

 automobile car races held in the Isle of Man between 1906 and 1922. Quarry Bends is now part of the Snaefell Mountain Course used since 1911 for the Isle of Man TT

Isle of Man TT

The International Isle of Man TT Race is a motorcycle racing event held on the Isle of Man and was for many years the most prestigious motorcycle race in the world...

 Races and 1923 for the Manx Grand Prix

Manx Grand Prix

The Manx Grand Prix motorcycle races are held on the Isle of Man TT Course every year for a two-week period usually spanning the end of August and early September. The 'MGP' or 'Manx' is considered to be the amateur riders' alternative to the Isle of Man TT Races held in May and June...

. Extensive road widening and road profiling occurred during 1985 at Quarry Bends by the Isle of Man Highway Board.

External links

• The Curragh's Wildlife Park