This lovely circuit heads through woodland before climbing onto a low ridge with excellent views for the gentle descend back to Langholm.
Bog Factor
Waymarked paths, minor roads, pathless open moorland - livestock so dogs to be under tight control.
Kilngreen car park, Langholm .
Bus to Langholm.
NY363848
Start from the Kilngreen car park adjacent to the River Esk, on the A7 just north of the town centre - the walk is waymarked no. 4. Follow the river upstream to the far north corner of the car park and cross Ewes Bridge on the left. Follow the surfaced road, continuing straight ahead where it branches right at the saw mill. Pass the lodge house and then the Clan Armstrong museum which traces the Reiver history of the clan and is open most summer afternoons. The ruins of Langholm Castle are on the far side of the cricket pitch and can be visited by detouring through the kissing gate opposite the museum.
Continue along the road, keeping right where a fork left leads to Langholm Lodge. Soon Holmhead house and steading is reached. Keep left at the fork in front of the house to pass to the left of the steading, ignore the next turn to the left which heads down to fields on the left. Soon North Lodge is passed and the track runs into woodland. Keep straight ahead where a forest track leaves to the right and eventually great views open up over the Esk valley.
The track now climbs gently and as it starts to descend towards Potholm keep left at a fork to stay in the woods to pass behind a house. At the T junction opposite a cottage, turn right to head more steeply uphill. Once in more open countryside, go over a stile at a gate and immediately turn right uphill away from the track, keeping the fence on your right.
Just before the brow of the hill turn right through a gate and follow the grassy path along the ridge and through another gate to climb to the summit of Potholm Hill marked by a small cairn. From the ridge there are lovely views down the Esk valley and along the Ewes Water. Keep following the ridge next to the remains of an old stone wall.
At the wall junction continue ahead crossing the stile and keep the wall on your left as you follow the ridge with the route and part of Langholm visible ahead. When the wall turns left keep ahead on a faint path descending to Castle Hill. From here the route continues dowhill marked by occasional marker posts aiming directly for Langholm.
To the left the Malcolm Monument on Whita Hill stands tall on the horizon. The route eventually picks up a stony track running downhill. Follow this through sparse trees to a gate. After this bear left along a track and then turn right at the next junction to reach the surfaced road. This soon emerges at the sawmill, bear left to cross Ewes Bridge and return to the start.
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