A distinct lack of malodour down in the Kirkcudbright mud.

This is another trip from my back catalogue. It was a glorious July day when Tony and I made our way down the muddy banks of the River Dee at Kirkcudbright on the Solway coast. We launched from Gartshore Park to the west of the town. Although the mud looks terrible , it was actually only 2 cm thick with relatively firm ground beneath. We had expected it to be foul smelling but it was not malodorous.

We launched 2 hours after low water so the flood was well established. We kept out the main current by paddling in the shallows and sticking to the inside of the bends. The tower marks what used to be the end of the Kircudbright sewage pipe. Fortunately a new marine outfall was built in 2006 and the sewage treatment works' effluent is now discharged about 10km away, under the sea at the mouth of Kircudbright Bay.

 Squabbling gulls were feeding at the rising margin of the tide which was...

 ...sweeping upstream. We could not yet see the sea beyond the muddy banks of the river channel.

 This old wooden fishing boat now lies above all but the highest tides but she has seen better days.

We paddled along the wooded shores of St Mary's Isle. The "isle" was the site of a priory dating back to the 12th century but nowadays it is just a secular peninsula. The channel between the isle and the mainland has long since silted up and the monks have long gone..

At last we caught sight of our destination. As the tide in the channel rose, Little Ross island and its lighthouse appeared over the mudflats.

Seakayaking from Fleet Bay to Kirkcudbright.

 A 43km day paddle from Carrick at the mouth of Fleet Bay to Kirkcudbright and return.

Dove Cave.

Keeping in line on the Solway.

No wonder the doves like it.

A lone watcher on the cliffs and a horrid murder.

The quest for a haddock of gargantuan proportions.

Danger on the Solway.

Tight ropes on Slack Heugh.

Photo album map

Danger on the Solway

From the quayside of Kirkcudbright we took the ebb tide back down the River Dee to Kirkcudbright Bay.

We passed the Gallovidian III which is the Range Boat for the Dundrennan firing range sea danger area that extends for 24x33km along the Solway coast to the SE of Kirkcudbright. Telephone contacts for the range are: 0141 224 8501 (Range Officer) or 0141 224 8502 (Guard House).

The channel was well marked by buoys and as you can see we were well assisted by the tide which runs at 3.5knots at springs.

We were soon approaching Little Ross island again.

We aimed for the narrow Sound which separates the island from the mainland. You can get a fun little race here on the ebb particularly when there is a SW wind.

Today all was calm as we swung to the west round the reefs of Fox Craig.

The quest for a haddock of gargantuan proportions.

Entering Kirkcudbright (kir-coo-bri) Bay, the landscape changed dramatically, the cliffs gave way to gentle wooded shores.

We stopped for a break at a little beach with a view to the far side of the bay and the distant Lake District hills in England beyond.

We now had a stiff paddle against an increasing ebb tide.

As we approached the town we came across a long marina pontoon. The tide was less to its right but stronger to its left, the course which Phil, Billy and I took.

It was a relief to land at the little slipway in the centre of the town...

...under the shade of a chestnut tree and not far from the walls of Maclellan's castle.

Tony and Jim were a little way behind an not having been before were tempted by the slacker water inside the pontoon. Tony had hoped there would be a bridge to paddle under but no such luck! He landed on the pontoon and walked to the shore.

Jim spotted Tony's problem and backtracked out in to the main current. Some serious paddling effort soon had him...

...up  at the slipway as a scallop boat made her way downstream. We now set off to find some lunch. Our destination was Polarbites excellent fish and chip emporium! In addition to local specialities such as scallops (landed 50m from the shop!), their conventional  fish suppers are superb. A word of warning, unlike some other fish and chips shops somewhat optimistic descriptions of what prove to be little more than sardines, Polarbite's large haddock is truly immense. Indeed, a great white would be well sated with a fish of such gargantuan proportions. By the time we left Kirkcudbright, we were well and truly stuffed, it was indeed fortunate the the ebb tide was in full flow!

A lone watcher on the cliffs and a horrid murder.

From Dove Cave we allowed the flood tide to propel us along an incredibly convoluted coast of upended greywacke strata.

The contrast with the open expanse of Wigtown Bay could not have been greater.

Near Borness Point we saw a lone figure who watched or progress along this apparently wild coast. Up on the cliff tops all is not so wild, it is a golf course!

There was superb rock hopping as we weaved through narrow channels at the base of the cliffs.

To the east of Brighouse Bay the cliffs were covered in beautiful golden lichen but our attention was caught...

...by the Little Ross lighthouse, which appeared through a gap in the rocks.

The lighthouse is actually situated on an island that sits in the mouth of Kirkudbright Bay. The Little Ross light was built by Alan Stevenson in 1843. The light flashes white every 5 seconds. In 1960 there were two keepers on the island and one murdered the other. This link is an incredible first hand account by David Collin, one of the local people who found the keeper's body.

We had made such good progress along the coast that we now decided to see if we could paddle up to Kirkcudbright or fish and chips. The tide however was about to turn...

MacLellan's Castle, Kirkcudbright

If you kayak with the tide up Kirkcudbright Bay and land at the slipway in Kirkcudbright, you can walk into the old part of town past the Harbour Cottage.


You will soon come to MacLennan's castle. This was completed in 1582 as a grand town house, although it was modelled in the style of a traditional Scottish L shaped tower house. It was owned by the provost of Kirkcudbright, Sir Thomas MacLennan. It never suffered siege damage and Sir Thomas's heirs ran out of money so it was never extended. As a result it is pretty much as it was originally built. It is open to the public.

The memorial carries the names of the local dead from WW1 and WW2.

22/03/2008

Wreck of the Schooner Monreith

There are no harbours accessible at all states of the tide on the whole stretch of the Scottish Solway coast from Gretna in the East to the Mull of Galloway in the west. Following the many indentations of the coast, this is a distance of over 270km. Danger to ships is confounded by the large tidal range of nearly 10m at springs and the extensive sand and mud banks which are exposed at low tide. The whole coast is exposed to southerly winds and swells and if ships were caught out by a storm at low tide they had to try and find shelter at the entrances to the firths. Only when the tide was high could they make their way up the river channels to the shelter of the wharves in such towns as Kirkcudbright.


On the 12th November 1900, the two masted sailing schooner Monreith, from the Galloway port of Wigton, was carrying a load of granite kerb stones from Newcastle in County Down, Northern Ireland to Silloth in England. A storm blew up and she attempted to take shelter in the mouth of Kirkudbright Bay (behind Little Ross Island, the island with the lighthouse on the horizon.) The bay was not yet deep enough and grounded and was driven onto the sand banks of Goat Well Bay where her timbers were pounded by the surf until she sank. Her crew were able to launch a boat in her lee and made their way safely ashore just as the Kirkcudbright lifeboat arrived. Monreith's sturdy timbers can still be seen reflecting in the wet sands at low tide.

22/03/2008


If you launch or land at Dhoon Bay near high water, you will miss this part of the Bay's history.

Goat Well Bay, Nun Mill Bay and Dhoon Bay are pretty much synonymous. Although not used on the map, Dhoon Bay is the current local name.

29/09/2007

A nine metre tide in Little Ross Sound

This last weekend saw 9.1m spring tides in the Solway so Tony and I drove down to Dhoon shore on Kirkcudbright Bay in the Solway. The Valley Nordkapp RM was dwarfed by the Rockpool Menai 18.


The ebb tide began to pick up as we approached Little Ross Island. Tony enjoyed the Menai 18.


We ferry glided across to the island for a spot of lunch. The Little Ross light was built by Alan Stevenson in 1843. The light flashes white every 5 seconds. In 1960 there were two keepers on the island and one murdered the other. (Thanks to Andy for the link.)


After lunch we swapped boats and went for a play in the tide race in Little Ross Sound.

29/09/2007