This year, 2025, was different, we travelled across the Irish sea to Northern Ireland. Thanks to Steve & Carol Skelly we had a really successful meeting. We stayed in an excellent hotel, the La Mon near Belfast, where we were made very welcome. Yes the holiday was pretty expensive with the added cost of a ferry but it was worth it to access a real adventure. We had 11 cars for most of the trip with a twelfth car joining us for the last day. Very glad that car joined us as it was Ed and Elwen Watters. They produced a little video which you can view at the end of this article.
First our arrival and a splendid introduction from Steve and Carol, we had gifts including individual wood block prints made by their daughter Eve.
Our first days drive, in the now familiar convoy style, took us to Downpatrick then Newcastle and finally Hillsborough. The roads in Northern Ireland are fascinating. I was surprised to see so many ups and downs. Time and again the cars in front would disappear from view in a sharp dip only to reassuringly reappear as the road levelled out.
Tuesday was Castle day! We visited Glenarm Castle before Ballycastle and Carnlough before returning to our hotel for the AGM. During the AGM the “Best Car Award” was held. This year we all voted for our choice of the best car. (No you couldn’t vote for your own car!) Michael McDowell was the clear winner with his pristine black Milano car. (Registration MIL4110 Get it?) The award is a memorial for David Davies, a keen and popular member who tragically died of MND in 2022. The award has previously been won by Steve Skelly and by Steve Auty.
The next item was exciting! The 200 Club Draw. I won’t spoil any secrets but when Carol drew the four winning tickets and the winner was actually in the room to hear the good news first hand. I still haven’t won! The Club paid for both our dinner wine and the Strangford Ferry which was much appreciated. Club funds also pay for the running costs of our website, supporting day drives and other expenses. If you don’t already belong to the 200 Club please join before next year.
So, the final day dawned and it wasn’t all sunshine! We had a good drive to Killyleagh and admired the Castle Towers but it was raining now. What a pleasant surprise then when the landlord of the nearby Dufferin Arms took pity on us and opened his pub early for us all to have coffee. It was a very interesting pub, the walls were covered in posters. I was amused to see a sign as I left the gents proclaiming; “FREE BEER, TOPLESS BARMAIDS, FALSE PUBLICITY.”
From Killyleagh we drove to the Strangford Ferry which added a charming element to our drive, the sun even made an appearance.
We finally drove to Mount Stewart a large and very impressive National Trust property where we had lunch in a private room. Another pleasant surprise was being met by Willa Carson and her son Alex. Willa is the widow of a previous member and as she lives locally she popped out, in her Barchetta, to see us! Mount Stewart was the perfect place to finish our trip as it allowed people to look around the house and leave at their own pace.
So altogether another adventure that continues the excellent trips that our group have enjoyed since 2010. So thank you Steve & Carol, and all the Northern Ireland members who made us very welcome.
Also many thanks go to Colin Metcalfe for all the photographs.
Martin Garrad
Now see Ed and Elwen’s little video with highlights of our last, and wet, day: