Dumfries and Galloway – Magnificent Coastline, Hills & Glens of South West Scotland

DUMFRIES AND GALLOWAY INTRODUCTION
Dumfries and Galloway possesses the magnificent coastline and the Galloway Hills and Glens of South West Scotland… but it is a fair assumption that most people only know Dumfries and Galloway as somewhere to be journeyed through on the way to somewhere else. Stranraer and Cairnryan on Loch Ryan, at the end of the A75, provide the shortest sea crossing to Northern Ireland whilst the M74 speeds the motorist north or south between Glasgow and Carlisle. Asked to name five places in this area and even a competent geographer might struggle. Yet, here, in this south-western portion of Scotland are towns and villages of infinite charm, lakes and lochs unknown outside of the area, hills rising to over 800 metres, untrod and unclimbed from one year’s end to the next. All rail enthusiasts know of Beattock Summit without really knowing where it is. The ancient and royal burgh Dumfries, in the east, is the largest town in the area and the administrative centre for it. Galloway extends ‘fra the Brig en’ o’ Dumfries to the Braes o’Glan App!’

HISTORY & HERITAGE
One of the oldest Christian centres in Britain was founded in 397AD at Whithorn by St. Ninian and it is here that the first stone-built church, the Candida Casa or White House, was erected. Pilgrims made this area a centre of devotion for hundreds of years. The 13th century bridge straddling the river Nith at Dumfries was built by the Lady Devorguilla, heiress of the Lords of Galloway. She married John Balliol and together they founded Balliol College at Oxford. Their son, through her, claimed the Scottish throne and became King Edward, the first of England’s ‘Puppet Kings’. A lovely walk along the banks of the Nith is said to have inspired ‘Tam o’Shanter’. But the recurring theme of history of this area is not all peace and light! The Kingdom of Galloway was a feudal Kingdom, the land of the Covenantors, smugglers and raiders where border feud and strife were an integral part of everyday life. This is the land of William Wallace who became an outlaw in this area after his failed resistance to Edward I. At Greyfriars Monastery in Dumfries, Robert the Bruce stabbed his cousin and rival, the Red Comyn, in 1306.

CUSTOMS & CULTURE
Hardly any other part of Scotland has flamed more fiercely in the pages of literature than this one. Scott, Burns, Stevenson and Crockett all paid homage to this land. Rabbie Burns Scotland’s national poet, made Dumfries and Galloway and Dumfries and Galloway made Burns. William Wallace and Robert the Bruce stirred his fire, fanned the flames of his passion to pen poems and songs in praise of the covenanters, John Knox and all those who peopled south-west Scotland in days of yore. Maxwelton House has been in the forefront of Scottish history and its fame has spread across the world because of its particular association with the ballad of Annie Laurie who was born there in 1682. Gretna Green nestles in the south-east along the ‘flats’ of the Solway Firth and is where, since 1753, hasty young lovers could be married by declaration, abolished at that time in England. Consequently it became an eloper’s heaven. Since 1940 marriage by declaration of love gave way to 15 days residency but the tradition lives on and couples from all over the world still tie the knot over the anvil.

LANDSCAPES & LANDFORMS
The scenery of the Highlands may be on a grand scale but it cannot compare with Galloway’s beauty, which is unsurpassed in all of Scotland. Galloway has a wild, mountainous hinterland and a long, quiet coastline, scalloped with delightful coves and bays. Where it pokes a slim finger into the Mull of Galloway, superb cliffs stand proud against the eternal pounding of the sea. Between these extremes lies a countryside of gentle hills and glens, woodlands, lochs and sparkling streams like the Esk, the Liddel and the Nith ‘where spreading hawthorns gently bloom’ and whose clear waters have inspired poets like Rabbie Burns to vigorously express Scotland’s manhood. Sunsets from the Machars Peninsula spread along the horizon like mellow butter and are said to have a radiance so bright that it hurts!

PLACES TO VISIT & EVENTS
Moffat, in the north-east of the area is well known by geologists and is an important place for study. So it is not surprising that there are places of interest featuring rocks in the area like the Wanlockhead Museum of lead Mining and the Creetown Gem Rock Museum. There are good visitor centres around the Galloway Forest Park and the coast offers excellent facilities getting better the further west one goes. The small towns are a delight and, despite their closeness to England, are quintessentially Scottish.

There are a range of historic sites and natural sights to enjoy, but in a region so vast it is best to commence your exploration at one of the numerous tourist information centres in the area.

SPORTS & LEISURE
Walking is brilliant in the serene hills like those around Moffat. Nearby, Moffat Water and the River Annan, a prince among rivers, are very popular with anglers who know a good fishing river when they see one. Sea fishing is extremely popular and as with any area offering tourist facilities there are plenty of tennis courts, bowling greens and boating ponds. Recently the Southern coastal fringe has become something of a Mecca for windsurfers.