The TT Mountain Course

Since 1907 the Isle of Man TT has run on public roads, and the Mountain Course is motorsport's most storied lap: 37.73 miles from Douglas through villages, over stone bridges, past the Creg-ny-Baa pub and across the mountain's open moor, with names - Ballaugh Bridge, the Verandah, Kate's Cottage - that riders speak like scripture. Race fortnight (late May into June) turns the island into the sport's world capital, hedgerow grandstands included; the rest of the year, anyone may drive or ride the course itself, marker by marker, which pilgrims do daily with appropriate awe and legal speed.

The main sights

• Race fortnight - the TT at full hedge-blurring commitment.
• The mountain mile - open moor above the treeline.
• Ballaugh Bridge - the famous leap in village scale.
• Creg-ny-Baa - the corner pub of the sport's lore.

When to go

Late May to mid-June for the TT (book beds a year out), late August for the Manx Grand Prix's classic flavour; any fine day otherwise for the self-drive lap.

What to expect

Race weeks transform and consume the island - prices, crowds and road closures included; plan around the schedule either way. Driving the course invites enthusiasm the law and blind bends do not share - the mountain has no speed limit sections but demands total respect.

Nearby

Douglas's promenade, Laxey's wheel and the island's glens between markers.