A25 (Isle of Man)

The A25 provides a quieter, more scenic route between Douglas and Ballasalla to the busy A5.

Passing through Oakhill

The route starts at a fork junction on the A6 at Ellenbrook and heads south west along the tree lined Old Castletown Road. As the route comes out of the trees, it follows a long, wide but undulating straight with good views across the interior of the island, but low hills rising up on the coastal side of the route. At Oakhill, it meets the B52 which runs out to Marine Drive on the coast, and then immediately after crosses the steam railway line, with a tight double bend over the bridge. The straight resumes, and leads to a windier section through the scattered settlement of Quine's Hill, where the B23 drops down to Port Soderick on the coast.

A steep descent drops down to cross the Crogga River, and then an even steeper climb lifts the route back up to its summit of around 100m. The short B24 then turns right, climbing up to the A5 as the route slowly descends through fields. The B25 and B26 then form a staggered crossroads at the bottom of Glen Grenaugh, the former running out to the coast and the latter again connecting to the A5. Another steep climb follows, but soon the route is dipping down to cross the Santon Burn. The climb is again steep, but this is the final stretch, with a long right hand bend turning the route to head north east. It comes to an end at a T junction where the A5 sweeps round a bend and over the railway line. Turning left leads on to Ballasalla, or continuing ahead goes back to Douglas.

History

As originally numbered in the 1920's, the route was given the B18 number, at least as far as Glen Grenaugh. It had been renumbered (through to the A5) as the A25 by 1963.