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After a mid-morning start from Edinburgh it was two o'clock when we reached Newton Stewart via the A702/A712. Perhaps slower than the M74/A701/A75, but much better scenery. After another hour we'd discovered several essential pieces of information. First, tourist information had moved from its previous home in a small car park to a building on the main street. Second, our thoughts of easily finding B&B accommodation were dashed by 1) the Newton Stewart Walking Festival being held that weekend and 2) about 200 wind farm workers also swelling the numbers competing for beds. Third, however, we did find space in the Bruce Hotel.
A little searching revealed that the Kilgallioch Wind Farm is being installed south of Barmill and about 20km WNW of Newton Stewart. Ninety-six turbines capable of generating 236 megawatts on a good (ie windy, but not too windy) day make it one of the largest UK on-shore installations covering an area of around 25 square kilometres. It should be visible from most Galloway Donalds when it is completed by the end of this year.
Deciding to get our legs exercised for the longer walks to come, we chose a nearby Marilyn - Pibble Hill - for an afternoon 'stroll'. I had planned on starting at the car park shown on the road almost due north of it - and that might have been the better choice. With thoughts of going on to Cairnharrow after Pibble, we instead decided to park on the minor road running between the two hills where the track up to the antenna farm on Cambret Hill provided plenty of parking space only 2.5km from the Pibble Hill summit.
Pibble Hill from our start point. The summit is about one quarter in from the right hand side.
We soon discovered that the first kilometre of tussocks and bog was slow going though there was a faint track to lure us in. This soon deteriorated to spasmodic stretches that still eased the way - a little. The higher slopes did improve, but progress was still slower than we'd hoped. For the latter part of the ascent we walked close to a drystane dyke with sections of vertical stones in the predominantly horizontal courses – a local Galloway style perhaps? It incorporated quite a number of rounded stones mostly as copestones, but also within the body of the wall. A case of making do with the material available I suppose, though the all-enveloping tussocks and bog hid the local geology.
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The summit cairn with its vertical column that looked metres high when first spotted in the distance, but shrunk as we approached, was reached in 49 minutes. We spent some time looking at the surrounding summits and deciding there wouldn’t be time to visit Cairnharrow as well, especially if it too was guarded by similar tussocks.
We chose to walk near the wall on our return hoping for better progress, but the going was worse and the return took longer for a total of two hours. There might possibly be easier going on the other side of the wall next to the forest, but thoughts of frying pans and fires kept us from clambering over it.
Cambret Hill and its antennae in the distance with Cairnharrow behind it.
The car still far in the distance.
Almost back at the car and looking north to Cairnsmore of Fleet.
And with a little editing a photo showing how Jaywizz's knees saw the route back!
The lesson from this is that if you love tussocks and bog this is the route for you. If not, perhaps the route from the north would be better.
PS: Pibble is now apparently used as an alternative name for pit bulls and similar breeds of dog. In the 15th -17th centuries it was another term for a pebble. Perhaps Pibble Hill was considered a mere pebble compared with its higher neighbours?
