Wigtownshire Ramblers-Carstramont and Mount Pisga

It's Saturday the 21st of June 2008,and todays walk is a six mile circular walk starting at Carstramont Wood,north of Gatehouse of Fleet.

Before starting i'd like to point out something about the spelling of Carstramont.
According to the Ordnance survey maps,the woods,the Doon and the bridge are all spelt Castramont,and the settlement is known as Carstramon.Rev C.H.Dick mentions Castramont.A number of Dumfries and Galloway P.D.F's and documents have either Castramon,Castramont,Carstramon or Carstramont.
There is a book in PDF form from Google books,free to download called 'Historical and Traditional Tales in Prose and Verse, Connected with the South of Scotland' published by J.Nicholson Kirkcudbright in 1843 in which the spelling is Carstramont.
This being the earliest reference i've found,and having spent enough time researching the spelling,Carstramont will now suffice for this account.Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Now down to the serious stuff the walk.
Twenty walkers and two canines(Curly and Robbie)gathered at Carstramont woods.

The weather forecast isn't good,and although it was fair when we set of from Newton Stewart,by the time we begin the walk it's drizzling.For that reason,there wont be many good pictures.All weather photographic equipment is in the pipeline.


Heading west over the river Fleet and past Nether Rusco we see the historical Rusco Castle dating back to c1500.


Turning off the quiet B796 we're now climbing.There's no hard climbing today.
Even in the drizzle there are still views worthy of a picture.

Occasional stops to allow the back markers to catch up...

...and obstacles to negotiate,with occasional mishaps.

We're above Ornockenoch and on the slopes of Mount Pisga.Moses climbed a Mount Pisga,perhaps this hill's been named in memory of that.I doubt Moses ever set foot in Scotland,but i could be wrong!

Atop Mount Pisga we'll have a wet lunch.

It looks as though i'm getting damp into the camera.

Lunch over we head down to Ornockenoch.

Ordnance survey don't name the loch,but Rusco's own website name it as Ornockenoch Loch.Try saying that to a taxi driver after a night in the pub.


Now walking alongside Ornockenoch Loch my camera seems to have taken on a lot of water. But wait! It appears to be brightening up.

We're now back on the B796 about two kilometres south of where we first joined it.

A break was taken to admire this handsome Equus caballus.

Back off the road again with Carstramont Woods in sight.


This sturdy stile is further proof that Galloway is walking country.


Walking now alongside the not very fleet River Fleet(this is the first real sustained precipitation we've had for a number of weeks)we're soon back over Carstramont Bridge and the cars.
Todays walk has been wet but not unpleasant.And as usual in the best of company.