Bermuda - Touring Paget Parish
Paget Parish is a good place to start or end your day of sightseeing.
You can either jump on a bus – a number 7 or 8 will
get you where you want to go – or you can take the ferry from
Hamilton over to one of the three docks in Paget: Lower Ferry
Landing, Hodson’s Ferry or Sea Kettle Wharf. Lower Ferry
Landing will probably suit you best.
Paget is one of the most popular parishes in Bermuda. On
one side it’s bordered by the ocean, on the other by Hamilton
Harbour. The view across the harbor to the city is a spectacular
one. In the early evening, just after dark, the lights and
the floodlit cathedral are an eye-popping sight; and you should be sure to visit the Bermuda Botanical Gardens while you're there.
Elbow Beach - Paget Parish - Courtesy Mandarin Oriental
The first stop of the day (Stop 9) is Clermont. It’s just a short walk from the ferry landing on Harbour Road. This fine old house is not open to the public, but it’s not out of your way and is worth stopping by to look. Once the home of Sir Brownlow Grey, the Chief Justice of Bermuda, it is noted for its fine and extensive woodwork.
Note: Clermont is also famous as the site of Bermuda’s first tennis court. Mary Outerbridge, on a visit from New York in 1874, learned to play tennis at Clermont and, on her return to the United States, she introduced the game to America.
From Clermont, walk west a short distance and turn left onto Valley Road, where you’ll find Stop 10, St. Paul’s Church. St. Paul’s was built in 1796 to replace an earlier church. Its claim to fame is the ghost which was said to haunt the area for a short time around the turn of the century.
THE GHOST OF ST. PAUL’S:
Never seen, but often clearly heard – the soft sound
of tinkling bells – the ghost was diligently hunted
by locals. The hunt became something of a media
event, if there was such a thing in those days, with
local vendors setting up refreshment stands. In the
end, however, an American scientist solved the
mystery by attributing the strange sounds to a rare
bird: the filio. But did he solve the mystery? The
bird was never seen here and the sounds continued,
at least for a while. Then, one day, the ghost
was gone, and it has never been heard from since.
Stop 11, Paget Marsh, is right next door to St. Paul’s on Middle Road. Paget Marsh has been preserved by the Bermuda National Trust to show what the islands must have been like when the first settlers arrived. The 18-acre tract of unspoiled woodland reserve features many of the islands’ endangered plants and shrubs, along with a variety of trees, including cedars, palmetto and mangrove. If you want to look around the marsh you’ll need to give the National Trust a call before you make your visit. They are very accommodating and will be happy to make the arrangements, 441-236-6483.
Know Before You Go!