Wigtownshire Ramblers-Colmonell Circular November 2010

My pal Slew was an admirable walk leader today.I was deputy walk leader on this occasion.
I'll be using pictures from both the recce and walk day.

Since I'm writing the report I'll do my usual trick of copying it to the blog.

Wigtownshire Ramblers Walk Report

Saturday the 6th of November 2010.


A heavy rain shower greeted the twenty one walkers who gathered at the Boars Head in Colmonell for todays circular walk.

The rain cleared and they began by heading south out of the village.
This is a nicely designed war memorial.

Stopping at the twin arched bridge over the river Stinchar,they learned that it had been rebuilt in 1868 at a cost of just under £1600.A feature of the rebuild was the variety of materials from different places.Freestone from Thornhill and Girvan, granite from Dalbeattie,and wood from Stranraer and Ballantrae were all used.

Over the bridge they changed direction to the east,where a 'Stinchar Walks' signpost showed a walk of three and a half miles to Pinwherry.

Trees, still shedding their leaves,showed off their wonderful autumn colours.

They continued along the road across the Glenside Bridge and past the Dalreoch estate.An abundance of pheasants were disturbed along this section.

Reaching Dalreoch Mains farm, the tarmac now changed to a wet and muddy farm track.

At Dangart a short break was taken.An old iron cast railway sign on a white painted gate produced a few smiles. It read "ANY PERSON who omits to shut and fasten this gate is liable to a PENALTY not exceeding FORTY SHILLINGS".

Time for some people pictures.Is that Scoop in some distress ?


An enclosure close by was home to a pair of White Peacocks.They're frequently mistaken for albinos, but are a colour variety of the Indian Blue Peacock.
I'd like to have got a better picture of them,but it looks as though they were quite shy.

Now they took to the fields on the lower slopes of Pinwherry Hill.Gaining a little height they were able to view the slopes,trees and settlements across the other side of the Stinchar valley.

Looking over to a hamlet with the name of Poundland, it wasn't surprising to see a Bargain Hill close by.

I kid you not with the above.Take a look on the Ordnance Survey map if you don't believe me.

Flocks of sheep made avoiding manouvres as the group passed by.

Back on farm track they reached Pinwherry Wood where a shoot was in progress.Here they took another short break to allow the group to bunch up.After talking to some of the shooters,they passed by safely.

The top picture of the above two I took on Wednesday's recce.I couldn't really see the ruins.Look in the trees between the houses in todays picture and it's there.
Clear of the woods they now overlooked Pinwherry,where the ruins of Pinwherry Castle were pointed out.The sun made an appearance and shone on it's walls.


I get in the picture courtesy of Scoop.

Here's an even better view back to Pinwherry and the castle ruins.

Now they began the return section of the route.A steady climb along a farm track on the southern slopes of Pinwherry Hill,brought them to heathery and tussocky moors.

Time for a group photo.

Boggy ground and the Alticane burn were crossed without incident bringing the group to the southern end of the Alticane Glen plantation.
I wonder if anyone's noticed that Alticane is an anagram of Alicante.Different as chalk and cheese eh!

From here a number of barbed wire fences were to be crossed,and the walk leader with some forward thinking had fetched a length of bicycle tyre to assist.Some interesting contortions were noted as these obstacles were climbed.

Looking at some of these faces they're maybe wishing they were in Alicante...

...that's better.

The Galloway Hills appear.

Open fields now brought them to hill above Craigbrae,where, overlooking Loch Lig lunch was taken.

Arecleoch Wind Farm,Farden farm and Farden hill are also in the above collage.

During this time,two passing trains were spotted on a wide length of railway bridge.Views of the Galloway hills were enjoyed.


After lunch they took to a solid farm road heading in a generally westward direction.

Reaching the farmhouse at Drumskeoch,the group were given a glimpse into it's history.One member of the group had spent five years of his childhood here,and described the changes since his departure.

Panorama of Twin Peaks on CleVR.com

Now the track undulated through fields of sheep and cattle.Lots of gates were opened and securely closed behind them.

Reaching Reuchal the coastline occasionally became visible.Arran and the Mull of Kintyre could be seen.

At Reuchillgate wood,farmtrack turned to tarmac road ,while the peaks of Ailsa Craig and Knockdolian spanned another view.

A long downhill road now took them past Auchenclery and the colourfully wooded Pyet Glen.
Large gate posts denoted the entrance to the historic mansion of Bardrochat,once the home of Alex McEwen the jazz, folk and blues musician.

Here's an interesting thing,north of Toronto in Canada is the Bardrochat Pheasant Farm,while in Saskatchewan is a hamlet called Alticane.I'll bet South Ayrshire has the originals.

Now they were overlooking the remains of Craigneil Castle,the Stinchar Bridge and Colmonell itself.

Back at the Boars Head with the walk over, the clouds were again beginning to gather.Having stayed dry throughout the walk the only casualties were a few damp feet from the boggy ground.

A number of walkers now headed to the garden centre at Ballantrae to enjoy tea and scones at the end of an enjoyable walk.

Panorama of Colmonell,South Ayrshire on CleVR.com

Reuchal

Here's a panorama from a recent visit to Colmonell.

Panorama of Reuchal from Wheeb Hill on CleVR.com

View north and east from the trig point at NX172838 Wheeb Hill near Colmonell.From the top of Ailsa Craig peering over the mast on Knockormal Hill to the Galloway Hills.

Glen Tig with the Ayr and District Ramblers May 2010

N.B.I'm trying a few frames around some of my pictures.A different slant for a change.

It's Sunday the 16th of May 2010, and I've decided to branch out a little.
I'm heading for Ballantrae to walk with the Ayr and District Ramblers.
They walk quite often in the Galloway area,and have regular Sunday walks,so it's a nice alternative if I want a Saturday free for other things.One of our group lives in Ayr,and will be walking today.
I get to Ballantrae early enough for a walk around.
'Ballantrae in Bloom',is always colourful.
My mobile ringing disturbs the tranquility.It's 'Slew' to inform me the walk start will be at Herensford,and that they're running late.
As I wait at Herensford there's more colour for me to photograph.
It's not too long to wait till the convoy arrives.It's not the easiest thing for seven or eight cars to find places to park along a narrow country road.Were soon gathered though,and after I'm introduced our walk leader outlines the route.There's 25 or 26 walkers today.
We're soon on the way in a generally easterly direction following the river Tig.The first part will be a bit of an obstacle course our leader tells us.

He's not wrong as we clamber over barbed wire fences,gates,fallen trees and muddy burns.
We're heading through Craig Wood when we come upon this derelict mill.In the archives there's a mention of a mill in Glentig in the late 1500's.This is surely more victorian.The engineering is fantastic though.Most of this land belongs to Lord Richard Gerald Wellesley of Knockdolian,son of the Duke and Duchess of Wellington.It's possible that's the reason for lack of information on the internet.Places like this were inaccessible to the public until 2003 and the 'Right to Roam' law.

This black fungi on a dead branch is Daldinia concentrica,also known as King Alfred's Cake.(I'm not really knowledgeable about a lot of the stuff I write on here,but the internet is like an encyclopaedia of everything.A couple of mouse clicks and Hey Presto there's the answer.)
This is our first 'Coffee Break'.It's not as tranquil as it looks,there's one or two fairly vociferous females in todays group.Not that the men are that quiet either.
Another break after a fairly difficult section to allow the tail enders to catch up.

Once clear of Craig Wood a steady climb brings us to the banks of the Meraddie Burn where we have lunch.The sun's come out,and the views to the Galloway Hills are excellent.Eating,drinking,and enjoyable conversation makes the break seem too short...
...and we're soon preparing to start the walk back.
We meet a farmer later who produces a rule book regarding young cattle and how ramblers must avoid them.There may well have been cattle in this field somewhere,but we saw no sight or sound of them as the farmer insisted we must have.
Across the glen,construction of the Arecleoch Windfarm is well under way.
Now it's all tarmac and farm track back to the start point.
The North Channel,officially classified as the "Inner Seas off the West Coast of Scotland" comes into view.
Now we can look down and across our outward route.
At the Mains of Tig the young steers are intrigued by our passing as they run across the fields to take a closer look.

It's just a short walk back to the cars now,and my first walk with the group has been a gentle and enjoyable introduction.I'll walk again with them when they return down our way.
On my way home I stop overlooking Colmonell...
...and finally get some pictures of the ruined...
...Craigneil Castle.Built in the 13th Century and named after Neil,Earl of Cassillis.
In its time it's served as a hiding place of King Robert the Bruce.It's been a feudal prison,and they used to execute people here.
Archive dot org describe it as "a grim old peel, rearing its bare walls above a rocky eminence".
There are signs detailing the perils of entering here.It certainly looks as though it could collapse at any time.
It's been an enjoyable day.