The Wigtownshire Ramblers

The Wigtownshire Ramblers Group walk weekly around Galloway in South West Scotland.
This is a compilation of just some of the pictures i've taken over the last two years.

Music is TCHAIKOVSKY's Serenade for Strings in C major Op 48 II Waltz Moderato Tempo di Valse.mp3.
First rendition by the Synergy String quartet,and concluding piece by Marco Boni from Souvenir de Florence 2 free for Ipod.

The Wigtownshire Ramblers

I'd usually be blogging Saturdays walk today.
Unfortunately yesterdays walk was cancelled.

I've therefore created a little Wigtownshire Ramblers Photo Story from some of my (in my opinion anyway) more scenic pictures.
It's on YouTube here.
The Wigtownshire Ramblers

Mayfly at Mochrum

Friday the 24th of April 2009.
It was a dull and hazy day on Mochrum Loch today.
That made no difference to the Mayfly.They just kept coming on up from the loch and landing on my car.
The bottom one must have had an early accident,it's had two of it's three tail appendages shortened.

Cylindroiulus punctatus (Millipede)

Walking through Doonhill Woods,i spotted what looked like a worm on a discarded apple core.
On further inspection i realised it was some sort of millipede.

My book says it's a cylindrosulus punctatus,but there are more internet hits for cylindroiulus punctatus and from more scientific sources,so i'll go with that.
Looks a different colour from the one in my book though.

A Miscellany of Galloway

A glimpse at a few of the delightful places within a few miles of my home in South West Scotland.
This and the Kirkcudbright Lifeboat clips have seen the light of day before-I thought it time for them to be resurrected.

RNLI-Kirkcudbright Lifeboat Naming Ceremony-Sheila Stenhouse

Clips from the launch and naming ceremony of the Kirkcudbright Lifeboat,the Atlantic 85-Sheila Stenhouse back in October 2007.

RNLI-Kirkcudbright Lifeboat Launch Day Pictures

October 2007.Pictures taken at Kirkcudbright at the 'Handing Over and Naming'ceremony of the new Atlantic 85 Lifeboat the Sheila Stenhouse.

RNLI-Kirkcudbright Lifeboat Atlantic 85 Sheila Stenhouse

Named the Sheila Stenhouse,the Atlantic 85,Kirkcudbrights new state of the art lifeboat going through its paces on it's launch day Saturday the 13th of October 2007. Dedicated to all lifeboatmen everywhere.

Raptors at the Big Water of Fleet Viaduct

An exhibition and flying display of a variety of birds of prey was held on Sunday the 19th of April 2009 at Cairnsmore of Fleet Nature Reserve.
Under the Clints of Dromore with the Great Water of Fleet viaduct close by, Elite Falconry put on an excellent display.
Elite Falconry


This golden eagle was the star of the static display.I couldn't say whether he or she flew,i didn't stay long enough.I don't think they were going to fly him though.

This owl was the star of the first flying display,and he or she let us know it-never once shut up.

The Vulture was most fun-very entertaining.

And here's the entourage.
A very good enjoyable display.
You Tube clips above or below.They could end up anywhere.

Raptors:- A Noisy Owl

An exhibition and flying display of a variety of birds of prey was held on Sunday the 19th of April 2009 at Cairnsmore of Fleet Nature Reserve.Under the Clints of Dromore with the Great Water of Fleet viaduct close by, Elite Falconry put on an excellent display.
http://www.elitefalconry.com/
The owl in this clip was extremely noisy.But apparently it's a natural owl thing.

Raptors:- A Lazy Buzzard

An exhibition and flying display of a variety of birds of prey was held on Sunday the 19th of April 2009 at Cairnsmore of Fleet Nature Reserve.Under the Clints of Dromore with the Great Water of Fleet viaduct close by, Elite Falconry put on an excellent display.
http://www.elitefalconry.com/
I didn't take enough notice of the commentary to say what type of Buzzard this was,but he was very entertaining.

Raptors :- Including a Golden Eagle

An exhibition and flying display of a variety of birds of prey was held on Sunday the 19th of April 2009 at Cairnsmore of Fleet Nature Reserve.Under the Clints of Dromore with the Great Water of Fleet viaduct close by, Elite Falconry put on an excellent display.
http://www.elitefalconry.com/
Both a Golden and a Tawny Eagle were part of the display.

Wigtownshire Ramblers-Finnarts Bay to Cairnryan

It's Saturday the 18th of April 2009,and todays walk begins north of Cairnryan,just off the busy A77 at the disused fish factory at Finnarts Bay.
We're a group of 18 walkers today.Following the course of the Water of App we head north east up the bottom end of Glen App.

Here at Finnarts farm sits an old military 3 tonner.We've encountered this vehicle before.On a previous walk in this area,it was carrying beaters heading to a shoot.

The weather's beautiful,and it's still lambing time...

Todays walk is at a leisurely pace as we take a break on the bridge over the Water of App.

Here at the 'Glen Church' we cross the busy A77.We've been here a couple of times before.One occasion can be found here.Portandea

Now we zig zag up the opposite brae,where we'll head South West,generally following the route of the A77.
Springtime and wispy clouds on a sunny day creates a rich tapestry.

Here we can see the rhododendron bushes planted in memory of the aviatrix Elsie Mackay.Their layout apparently spelled 'Elsie'.Perhaps it's still visible when the bushes flower.

Now we've a short walk through some forestry....

...emerging opposite the tip of the North Rhins.
Along here on the slopes known as 'Old Park of the Gleick',we stop for lunch.
There followed a pleasurable half hour watching the ferries go by as the ravens and buzzards circled overhead.
Our walk leader circulates some interesting information of the military activities around here during WW2.We'll see some remnants further into the walk.

All too soon and reluctantly it's time to move on.

Now we cross the Galloway Burn and onto Little Laight hill.

This is 'The Taxing Stone',and is believed to be a Toll point and standing stone which marks the burial-place of Alpin, King of Dalriada, killed in 741 in Glenapp.I need to revisit,it was only after we'd left i found out there were names etched into the stone which a closer inspection would have revealed.


Directly opposite the 'Taxing Stone',are the ruins of Little Laight Gun Battery.According to local knowledge the gun mountings were never used,but were always in a state of readiness should the need arise.

Panorama of Little Laight Gun Battery on CleVR.com

The gun mountings are in a remarkably good condition...

...but not the brickwork.An extremely knowledgable rambler(Been in the profession)explained that these were Shale bricks.They're very porous and absorb a lot of moisture,resulting in this sort of damage.

There followed a good look around the rest of the Gun battery.

On the move again we're on the last leg of todays walk.We're heading down Lairds Hill and the Bonny Braes.There's a lot of boating and sailing activity on Loch Ryan.

Horny sheep eye other horny sheep with suspicion.

More remnants of a bygone age here.These are Mulberry Harbour 'Beetles' at Old House Point.

And the end of the walk.In such a lovely setting a group photo seemed in order.
A really pleasing,very scenic and leisurely walk.

How to get into this cave !

After a long and often muddy walk down Dunskey Glen near Portpatrick in South West Scotland,we got to the caves at Port Mora.
The budding young movie maker Callum Jack Butler decided to make a movie.This is the result.
Make sure you watch till the end of the credits !

Wigtownshire Ramblers-Newton Stewart Circular April 2009

It's Saturday the 11th of April 2009,and it's the Easter Weekend,so numbers of walkers are likely to be down.
Todays walk is a Newton Stewart circular,and i'm leading it.
It's a lovely day and the forecast is excellent,so it'll be nice and steady.Me and my newly retired deputy took five hours on the recce on Monday.

Meeting up at the riverside car park,we number fourteen-twelve regular,one guest and one new local walker.
There won't be a lot of information on this particular blog since i've previously covered much of where we're going.I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.
Some excellent additional pictures have been included.Thanks to my fellow rambler/photographer for allowing their use.

We begin by crossing the Cree and walking up the river to Creebridge.It's recorded that Robert the Bruce forded the Cree at this point in 1329 on a pilgrimage to St Ninians.

We head on through Minnigaff and up through Conifers Leisure Park...

...before stopping for a little history at Kirroughtree house.

Kirroughtree was the home of the Heron family whose ancestry can be traced back to a Norman adventurer called Fairuns, who came to Britain with William the Conqueror.
Around 1300 a Gerald Heron fought on the side of King Robert the Bruce, who, on victory, compelled Galloway to return to the Scottish Crown after years of English Rule. As a reward, Gerald Heron was granted the rich lands of Kirroughtree. Over the next 400 years the family prospered.

In 1719 Patrick Heron, a wealthy cattle trader, built Kirroughtree House as a country mansion and status symbol. The lineage continued until 1873, when the last heir sold Kirroughtree to a Major Armitage. The Major carried out a number of Victorian additions to the house, and used Kirroughtree as a sporting estate until it was sold by his family, and became a hotel in 1952.

The poet Robert Burns was a good friend of the Heron family and paid several visits to Kirroughtree.

This is Verse 6 of a Burns composition.

Then let us drink:- ' The Stewartry,
Kerroughtree's laird, and a' that,
Our representative to be':
For weel he's worthy a' that!
For a' that, and a' that,
Here's Heron yet for a' that,
A House of Commons such as he,
They wad be blest that saw that.

We head on through to the edge of the golf course where we take great care to avoid wayward golf balls...

...and take a moment's rest.

Now we're into the woods overlooking Minnigaff and the golf course.Here's an old beech tree that's had some heavy damage.Amazing they can survive after losing such a large limb.
On our recce on Tuesday we'd spotted a number of fallow deer over in a field...

...and they're back now to delight todays walkers.
Now we emerge from Bower Wood,where incidentally the bluebells will weave a beautiful tapestry in a week or two...
...at the top of Old Edinburgh road.Turning right alongside Bower drive we're greeted by this friendly canine.

Now we reach Queen Mary Bridge,where we all have a go at dropping a pebble cleanly into the wishing well...


...and i get in the picture.

We move up to Monnigaff Church now.This Yew tree has been growing here for 900 years.Apparently it's only a baby though,they've discovered a tree in Sweden whose roots first grew 9550 years ago.How can they be so exact?

We linger a while to take in some of the old graves and monuments.
My deputy walk leader sneaks off early-we'll lunch close by-she's brought along enough chocolate easter eggs for all of us,and she's away to hide them for us to hunt.

All eggs accounted for we take an unhurried lunch at the picnic tables alongside the river.

Another excellent picture from my fellow photographer.

On the move again,too much light behind this picture.We head up to the Girvan road at the junction of Douglas Terrace and King Street where we turn right before turning up the hill at Duncree.

With lovely views back to Penninghame and the Galloway hills,we're crossing the fields of Old Hall Farm.In days of old the coach road went from here to House O'Hill.This lost lamb was still looking for her mother as we left.Hopefully she found her.

Another lovely view taken by A.N.Other Rambler.The roof of MacMillan Hall against the Cree estuary.
Continuing on we head through Blairmount Park and Pond,reaching the western end of the town.Here we take great care crossing the A75-the busiest road in the county.

Along to Barbuchany where the owner imparted it's history to us.As a former local teacher,he was well known to quite a few of the group.
Our next target is the telephone mast above Barrhill Farm woods.Views of Newton Stewart begin to open up to us.

More pictures from from my fellow photographer.
Reaching the mast we take a break for refreshments and to enjoy the view.

Here one of our senior ramblers pointed out,is the perfect view for showing why Newton Stewart is known as the 'Gateway to the Galloway Hills'...

...and i seem to be getting in the picture a bit more these days.

Now as we begin to descend,the Cree Estuary opens out.I know i've taken many pictures here,but i make no excuses for taking more.Each time i'm up here it's a different view.

It's downhill to the Wigtown road now...

...passing a couple of hefty porkers on the way.

A short walk along the A75 brings us back to the Cree.
Where the riverside walk completes the day for us...

...and those of us who went for coffee were treated to the heron patiently waiting for a passing mouthful.
I think the walk was a success.I enjoyed it.Of course the weather helped.