THE FANTASTIC weather for the first two days of the Easter weekend saw Sulby Claddagh filled with motorhomes and campers for the first big weekend of the camping season.

The site was filled close to capacity on Good Friday and throughout the weekend as glorious sunshine filled the Manx sky, although there was a reminder of the unpredictability of the Isle of Man weather with heavy rain overnight on Saturday and throughout the following morning.

This summer is the first time that strict new regulations come into force at the Sulby Claddagh campsite, following a series of incidents involving vandalism and unacceptable behaviour by a small minority of idiots.

The Department of the Environment was faced with little alternative other than to restrict access to the site and to ask for regular police patrols to ensure that a peaceful environment was maintained on the picturesque site at the base of the Sulby valley.

Anyone staying at the site now needs a camping permit. The message from the Department of the Environment is: “The Sulby Claddagh is a special place. Please respect, protect and enjoy it.”