Wigtownshire Ramblers Garlieston to Innerwell October 2011

Saturday the 8th of October 2011.

Todays walk is one that's been done by the ramblers before,but somehow it's the first time I've done it with them.

I've been here quite a few times though and here's the links to my previous visits.

Woodland and Shore

Good Friday Nature Walk

A walk round eggerness point

We're a group of sixteen as we leave Garlieston.
We've two guest walkers today.Recently moved to Newton Stewart and potential members we welcome them to our friendly group.

It was raining when we left Newton Stewart,but although dull it's dry for the start of the walk.
We're taking the path north to Innerwell around Eggerness point.

Over the bay there's not a soul around the jetty today,back in July it was swarming with people.
The only thing I can find out about Culderry House is that it's listed as a Country House and that there was a theft earlier this year from an outhouse of 100 old vinyl records.

There's a variety of sea birds in Garlieston bay today,but I've a sneaking suspicion that this one isn't quite real.

A short walk along the beach gets us onto the Eggerness road.
My thanks to Scoop for a few of today's pictures.

Loose cows on the road were dealt with by Cabby and we were again on our way.
Our route takes us through a section of wood and a couple of field edges.There's quite a number of signs telling us to stick to the path.

A gate leads us back into another stretch of woods that will continue along to Innerwell.
Just through this gate I remind the walk leader of the Mulberry Harbour remnants down below us.
Now this just shows how bad my memory is.I told the group we'd find four 'Beetles' down here.
When we got down I remembered there were only two......

..............looking at this picture it looks like there's only one, but looking back in my archives Beetles, there are three.Que sera sera !


A walk through the woods where we saw the remnants of the drystane walls at Castle Point took us past Pikehorn, Beggs Hole, Shorewood Belts and Jultock Point. I've no information of how any of these were named.


Reaching Innerwell we lunched on the rocky shoreline.Apparently the fishery here is no longer functional,but a little way up the coast we could see fishing nets out in the bay.

Published in 1846 and written by Samuel Lewis, A Topographical Dictionary of Scotland  has this passage in it.
A salmon-fishery is carried on at Port-Innerwell, which produces an annual rental of £200 to the proprietors; and herrings, mackerel, cod, and various other kinds of fish, are also taken here in abundance. Herrings were likewise found some few years since off Garliestown, and many of the inhabitants engaged in the fishery; but from recent want of success, it has been almost discontinued.
I guess the Stationmaster was correct in his assumption it hadn't been in use for some time. 

The sea was very calm with very little activity.We had the company of one solo Oyster-catcher.Visibility on the other side of Wigtown Bay  was almost non existent.

It was soon time to be heading back.We'll retrace our steps.There must be a way to make this a circular walk without upsetting landowners.We'll work on it.

One of the above photographs has been doctored.
Answers on a postcard please to the Psychiatric unit, c/o The Chrichton,Dumfries.

A diving bird was one of a few distractions on the return.

Back on the tarmac,one of the two steers is still on the road.We've been lucky to have kept dry all this time but now it's becoming a little drizzly.

Back along the beach we can view a large flock of seabirds out in the bay.

Back in the village we pass the weir where the old oatmeal mill once stood.
See here Garlieston
My last picture of the day was of Madame Chairperson and an invalid scooter,but I'll spare her blushes by not including it.
A pleasant enough walk today.