Haram Island is one of the chain of islands surrounding Guernsey and is the smallest of the inhabited islands open to the public. It takes about 20 minutes to reach it by ferry and those looking for a half-day trip in breathtaking nature are more than welcome to come to this island.
The history of the lift
The first people arrived on the island about 10,000 years ago and some of their ancient tombs can be found in Haram. During the 8th century, a monastery was founded on the island by the disciples of Saint Tigual, which formed the basis of the church and surrounding buildings that exist on the island today and date back to the 11th century.
In 933 the island became part of the Duchy of Normandy, but in 1204 it passed to the English Crown, when Normandy became part of the dominions of King FranceBetween the 16th and 18th centuries, the monastery ceased to be used as a monastery and became a place of recreation and hunting for the local nobility. This continued during World War II when the island was occupied by the Germans, who saw it as a source of food and entertainment for the occupying soldiers and less as a military post. In 1949, four years after the liberation of the island, it was purchased from the British Crown by Guernsey And since then it has been rented out to all sorts of private individuals who live on the island. Since 2008, the island has been managed by the Starboard Foundation, and according to its decision, it is strictly forbidden to have cars on the island in order to preserve its unique character (the only motorized vehicle allowed is a tractor used to distribute supplies to the island's residents and work the fields). This is especially critical for people with disabilities, because the level of accessibility on the island, which contains quite a few ups and downs, tends to zero, so it is worth taking this into account when planning your trip.
My trip to Haram
I arrived at Haram on a very cool February morning. The ferry ride was short and pleasant and within about twenty minutes we reached the port. I was greeted by a blue house (one of the only hotels on the island) and next to it another row of buildings, one of which is the Mermaid, the only pub on the island and next to it an even more important building: the only public toilet on the island.
After I was updated on this important information, it was time to start the trip. Since the island is small, it is very difficult to get lost on it and what is recommended to do is simply a circular route between the various beaches. The trip begins by climbing a hill, on top of which is the church of Saint Tuguel, named after the saint who created the inhabitants of the area. This tiny church is from the 11th century and the monastery that surrounded it has been turned into a kind of romantic apartment hotel, which is a great place for couples who want to get away from the noise, the hustle and the non-stop action of Guernsey 🙂
If you continue from there, you will come to an intersection where you can go right or left. To be honest, it doesn't really matter because the route is circular and you end up at the same place. I chose to turn left and started going down. Slowly, the nature became wilder and wilder until I reached one of the small coves of the island. The view from there was spectacular and I believe that in the summer the place will become a magical beach.
I climbed back up the cliff and started walking along it. And again, wherever you look you will see paths crossing wild vegetation, rocks, seagulls, a magical green-blue sea, and the foam of waves crashing on the rock. Since I arrived, as mentioned, in February, the winds were quite strong, but this only contributed to the romance and the feeling of walking in the wildest nature together with the forces of nature. And so after an hour of walking, more or less, the landscape changes again and becomes more agricultural. Suddenly, out of nowhere, walls and fences grow around the areas, where cows or horses must graze in the summer, and slowly the small cottages and with them the flowers return.
On the way back I noticed buildings called “insect hotels,” and when I asked what they meant, it turned out that the islanders are very proud of their biodiversity. That’s why they take care of it, among other things, by preparing small “hotels” that contain all the goodies so that the insects have a place to live and eat. This is undoubtedly a paradise, where even the cockroaches live in a five-star hotel.
And so I finally arrived back at the island's port. Since I had more than an hour to kill and all that fresh air made me hungry, I popped into the island's pub. I discovered a charming and authentic place, which looked exactly like a sailor's pub should look. Hunger, or rather foolishness, made me deviate from the infamous Fish and Chips and go for the Haggies, a traditional Scottish dish made of various beef entrails fried together. I don't know if it was hunger or the chef's talent, but I personally really enjoyed this dish, the only healthy thing in which was the green peas that were left on the side (however, as the heroine of the film said Tati Daniel – “You have to die from something.”
In this pub I met a group of Morris dancers, a dance that originated in the south of France and came to England in the Middle Ages and remains popular to this day. When they heard that I was from Israel, they agreed to show me one of their dances, and here it is before you.
Once these lovely people had finished dancing, we all had to go to the other port of the island so that we could return to Guernsey. The reason we don't always return from the port we sail from is because of the extreme tides in the area, which means that in the afternoon the main port of the island is almost empty of water. A few minutes after we arrived at the port, the ferry arrived, which took us back to the capital of Guernsey, St. Peter Port. I returned satisfied, full and happy. There is no doubt that the High is a small and wild paradise and I will undoubtedly return to it in the spring or summer, when the weather is warmer and more pleasant.