South West Scotland - 4

17- 24 Jun 2019

Kites

The rain had stopped by the time we reached our destination, the CMC site at Garlieston, on the east side of The Machars peninsula. The site is in a lovely location, overlooking the small bay and town. Next morning we caught a local bus to Wigtown, known as Scotland’s book capital. John was in his element here; not only bookshops and coffee shops, but bookshops with coffee shops! We can heartily recommend Reading Lasses – probably the best coffee of the trip, with a delicious homemade scone and jam, enjoyed in leather armchairs surrounded by shelves and shelves of books.

Away from the second-hand bookshops, there is a darker side to Wigtown. A short walk took us to the marshy banks of the River Cree and the sombre Martyrs Stake. Here, in 1685 two women were tied to stakes and drowned by the rising tide for refusing to renounce their Covenanter faith. The overcast skies added to the dark atmosphere.

The Martyr's stake

Tuesday was a brighter day – meteorologically and metaphorically. We caught a bus in the other direction, down to the small harbour of the Isle of Whithorn. We walked out to the remains of St Ninian’s chapel, and came across the nearby memorial to the crew of the fishing boat Solway Harvester. During heavy storms in January 2000 the boat was lost with all hands near the Isle of Man. All the crew came from the isle of Whithorn. 

St Ninian's Chapel

After lunch on the site we went for a walk in the sunshine around the headland from Garlieston to Rigg bay. During WW2 the concrete Mulberry Harbours used in the invasion of Normandy were tested here, having been constructed in Garlieston.

Our final port of call was to be Kirkcudbright, but we broke our short journey at the Red Kite feeding station near Laurieston. Here we witnessed an amazing display, as dozens of kites circled and swooped to pick up food. Our cameras worked overtime, but we lacked the specialist kit to get really good shots – a couple of serious bird photographers had cameras with lenses the size of howitzers.

Our destination in Kirkcudbright (Kir-coo-bree to the locals) was Silver Craigs, a lovely campsite on a hill above the town, but only about 15 minutes’ walk to the town centre. We spent a pleasant day in the town; firstly at the old Toll House, now the Tollbooth arts centre, then at Broughton House. This fine old townhouse was the home of the painter Edward Hornel. Whilst works of art dominate the inside, the rear gardens show his other passion. Stretching down to towards the River Dee, they were divided into themed areas. Our afternoon walk along the river towards the remains of the old railway viaduct was curtailed slightly when the heavens opened.

Broughton House garden

Then it was back to Edinburgh for a couple of days with Louise, Steve and Jocelyn, followed by overnighting in Filey for more family visiting.