What a glorious morning. I woke in the night to see the red lights on the wind farms spread out across the horizon.
There is no gentle easing into the day, with a strenuous but stunning early morning walk along the cliffs to Rascarrel Bay.
The sky clouds over as I turn inland. I feel like a farmer on his morning rounds as calves run alongside the hedge, and lambs cluster round with their breakfast-please bleats. Don’t their mums take care of that?
Back on the A711, turning a corner at Bankhead, a monstrous figure looms out of the mist. The Wicker Man! This has made my day. All I need now is Christopher Lee to stride across the fields.
I turn off the main road at East Kirkcarswell and follow pleasant lanes for several miles as they wind up and over the hills.
There are four buzzards overhead, riding the thermals. Finally, I descend into pretty Kirkcudbright for the journey home.
Walk distance: 13 miles.
Total distance: 1,712 miles.
Look forward to meeting you on 25th May at Drumroamin Farm Campsite. Stay safe, regards Lesley 👍
Thanks Lesley.
What a glorious camping spot!
It was quite a view to wake up to. 🙂
That looks a lovely stretch of coast. I have only got as far as Dalbeattie, coming from the Scottish border so this coast is all new to me and looks lovely.
It’s the usual mix, at least so far, of some lovely coastline and then a lot of road walking.
Hi Tony, I’m really enjoying following your trip. I’m also started a coastline walk around the UK in stages, last year, starting with Anglesey and then clockwise along the North Wales Coast and northwards. I’ve currently got as far as Moffat, which or course is nowhere near the coast, which brings me to my question? How are you finding the road walking along the Dumfries and Galloway Section?
I’ve done an awful lot of backpacking over the past 40 years, but one aspect I’ve never enjoyed is road walking which I find very harsh and tiring on my feet. So after sections on the road around estuaries in Lancashire, Cumbria and along the Solway I decided to alter my plan and not stick religiously to the coast where it may be less enjoyable, and to make it a loose circumnavigation, heading inland to avoid roads or for a different viewpoint, even hopping across to some of the islands around Scotland enroute. So my plan currently has been to follow the Annandale Valley up to Moffat (where I’ve now reached) and then head across land to meet back at the coast at the Mull of Galloway and make this an upland section.
But …..there’s always a nagging feeling in the back of my mind that in years to come I’ll regret not sticking to the coast.
So, how have you found the road walking in this section, or any section for that matter? When I mapped it out I think I worked out that between Gretna and Glen Luce as much as 60% would be along roads.
John
Hi John – Great to hear from another coastal walker. You raise a very good question. Some walkers set specific rules to follow but I don’t have any, other than to do what I enjoy and to walk all the way. I will be doing a lot of islands, I will use ferries if I find the alternative dull, I will head inland if there is something interesting.
Recently I was faced with a lot of road walking in Essex and now for the first two weeks in Scotland. Tbh in the second week I was starting to wonder if Scotland was going to be all that I hoped for, but speaking to another coastal walker last week (who has completed the circuit), he said that he had the same feeling as me, but it soon changed for the better. I can see now that I have some coastal paths coming up which looks great.
I don’t mind quiet roads, it is the busy ones that are difficult. The other side is that sometimes after slogging along rough coastline it is a relief to walk along a road.
So far, there has always been a highlight each day to compensate for the road walking.
I’m waffling a bit because there is no clear answer. I am planning to stick as close to the coast as I can, without it becoming a chore.
I don’t suffer physically with roads as I walk in boots with plenty of support, Meindl.
I would read other blogs and get a feel for the sections. If there is something you would love to see or experience then it is probably worth putting up with the roads. If not, choose your own route. In the end it’s your walk and it’s nice that people do it in different ways. You need to enjoy it as it’s tough!
I think your upland section idea sounds great.
All the best.
Tony
Thanks Tony. I’m aiming to rejoin the coast to follow the Rhins of Galloway Trail (rather than the Mull of Galloway Trail). You probably know this proposed route is still in the planning but they happily sent me the maps of the proposed route around the whole coast of the headland, and it looks like it could already be walked in full.
That is my next stretch as I finished at Sandhead last week. The coastal walker that I was speaking to said the west coast of The Rhins is beautiful.
As an update, after a planning my inland route across from Carlisle to Newton Stewart I got as bit of ribbing from a couple of friends for planning to head away from the coast, so in a last-minute change of plan I headed up to Annan and followed the coast to Newton Stewart. There were a few short sections of truly lovely coastline, especially between Sandyhills and Kippford, and from Millhall to Kirkandrews, and I’m glad I got to walk these. But my fears were realised with the lengthy road sections, and some of the core paths seemed to disappear beneath my feet into dense undergrowth. So I was interested to read your updated ‘About me’ page, saying that after walking the ACT you’ve realised it is the wild places you seek. That’s probably why I’ve found some of the coast sections so far haven’t brought me that sense of calm and escapism that I’ve had from backpacking in the hills over the years.
Almost 40 years ago, when I was a teenager, I backpacked solo from Land’s End to John O’Groats, and it gave me a real appreciation early in life for this great island of ours. And that’s what I’m aiming to get from a loose circumnavigation. In short, I won’t be feeling like I’m cheating if I simply head where I fancy, even if it’s inland and up into the hills for a while. Little pockets of near wilderness can be found all over the UK.
Good to hear from you again John. Totally agree with you. I had planned my next section in Scotland from Ardrossan, but it will have to wait for better weather. It includes the West Island Way on the Isle of Bute and the Cowal Way. We are free to wander where we may. 🙂
I’ve just made the connection with your excellent blog which I had bookmarked a long time ago! Some inspirational stuff on there. I’m thinking of doing the Patagonia O Circuit next March but, initially, the use of platforms at the campsites put me off with my Zpacks Duplex. I have read about the work-arounds or I could buy the Flex Kit for it, but there are so many alternative places to hike.
A sadly lapsed Blog I’m afraid, I had every intention of starting up again to record this walk, but I joined the local Mountain Rescue Team last year and have been putting my efforts and time into that recently. I just record my walks on Facebook for now.
It’s been 30 years since I was in Patagonia and trekked the circuit and few of the other classic treks down in Chile and Argentina, but to this day it remains a highlight. I hope things haven’t changed too much and it still retains that remote adventurous feel. You’ll love it. No platforms back then though, you just camped where you wanted. The thing to prepare for is the Patagonian winds, they can rip a tent to shreds. I was holed up with two other backpackers in Los Glaciers National Park for 3 nights as the winds destroyed their tents and they had to bail out.