4 min read

Galloway

2020-09-03

As lockdown one began to lift, and we were allowed to travel within the U.K, we planned a short trip up to the Galloway Forest. I’ve wanted to visit for a long time to witness the dark skies and we thought it would be a great area to take the bikes.

It took us all morning to remember how to pack the van and find everything we needed for three days of cycle touring. We finally got up to Clatteringshaws Loch around 2pm and parked up at a really pretty wild camping spot I’d found on-line. We were keen to get a quick ride in before tea, so did a gravel ride out and back to Loch Dee. James managed the gravel on his CGR with few issues but it was harder going on my road bike! I was tempted to make it a (much) bigger loop all the way to Loch Trool and back on the main road, but James sensibly talked me out of it and instead we went back to the van for tea. We managed to get in the van and lock up the bikes just as a a storm blew in - excellent timing.

The next morning, after coffee and porridge we left our pretty wildcamp spot and drove around to Knockman Wood, just North of Newton Stewart. James had planned a route following quiet B roads up to Glen Trool and back to Newton Stewart over Glenvernoch Fell. The road to Glen Trool was fantastic, quiet and mystical through the woods. We only saw one car the whole stretch. When we arrived at Glen Trool, the visitor centre was just about to open, so we decided to do an out and back to the Loch to see Bruce’s stone, before returning to the visitor centre for a coffee. We took our coffee down to the river, and sat and watched the many birds flit back and forth to the feeders. Leaving the village of Glen Trool, we did a small stint on the A714 before climbing steeply over the moors of Glenvernoch and Ochiltree. These roads felt more like the roads around the moors of Lancashire, and we enjoyed the climb, view and fast decent into Newton Stewart.

We got back to the van around midday, and drove to our next campsite for a lazy afternoon. We did manage a short walk around Garlieston Bay in the evening before heading to bed.

We’d planned a big explore of the whole pennisula today, and so set off early towards the Isle Whithorn. It was a bright, crisp day and we stopped to walk the headland around St. Ninian’s Chapel. Before heading up the west coast, we decided to do a short out-and-back down a dead-end lane to Burrow Head. This short detour took us much longer than anticipated as we kept stopping to eat blackberries. As we cycled up the west coast, we were exposed to a very strong, cold headwind which made cycling quite unpleasant. It was very much heads-down and get it done rather than admiring the scenery. Tired and cold we were glad to arrive for a rest at Port William. Unfortunately, when we arrived nothing was open and it started to rain. I had a bit of a strop, James filled me with snacks and we decided to cut the ride short and head straight back to Kirkinner, rather than continue up the coast road. Although I was disappointed to miss out on the stretch of road, I was glad to escape the weather and get back to the van.

The sun came out for our last day in Scotland. We drove around the Cree estuary to the next peninsula along, near Fleet Bay. I’d been here previously with friends and it was lovely to be back. We did a short ride around the coast, stopping for views at Knockbrex bay, and for ice cream at Cream o’ Galloway.

We had a traditional van picnic before driving home along the coast. I remember thinking it would be amazing to kayak around the coastline here, little did I know I’d be back sooner than expected.