Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Threave Castle
2 miles west of Castle Douglas, off the A75 • April-Sept daily 9.30am-4.30pm, Oct 9.30am-3.30pm • £4.50; HS •
T
07711 223101
A visit to
Threave Castle
begins with a ten-minute walk from the car park to the River
Dee, where you ring a brass bell for the boat to take you over to the flat and grassy
island on which the stern-looking castle stands.
Built in around 1370 for one of the Black Douglases, Archibald the Grim, first Lord
of Galloway and third Earl of Douglas, the fortress was among the first of its kind, a
sturdy, rectangular structure completed shortly after the War of Independence. he
rickety curtain wall to the south and east is all that remains of the
artillery fortifications
,
hurriedly constructed in the 1450s by the ninth earl in a desperate - and unsuccessful
- attempt to defend the castle against James II's new-fangled cannon. he castle was
partially dismantled in the 1640s, but enough remains of the interior to make out its
general plan.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE
KIRKCUDBRIGHT AND AROUND
3
By bus
Buses to Kirkcudbright stop by the harbour car park.
Destinations
Dumfries (Mon-Sat hourly, Sun every 2hr;
1hr 40min); Gatehouse of Fleet (Mon-Sat hourly, 5 on
Sun; 10min).
INFORMATION
Tourist o
ce
Harbour Square (Feb-March & Nov Mon-Sat
11am-4pm, April-June & Sept-Oct Mon-Sat 10am-5pm
Sun 11am-3pm, July & Aug Mon-Sat 9.30am-6pm Sun
10am-5pm;
T
01557 330494,
W
kirkcudbright.co.uk).
ACCOMMODATION
Baytree House
110 High St
T
01557 330824,
W
baytreekirkcudbright.co.uk.
An old-fashioned
Georgian B&B with four spacious rooms and a drawing
room for use by guests. There's also a self-catering garden
studio for two with its own conservatory and g
arden
(minimum
sta
y usually three days). Doubles
£78
;
apartment
£92
Ì
The Greengate
46 High St
T
01557 331895,
W
thegreengate.co.uk.
Once the home of the illustrator
Jessie M. King, this attractive, creaky old B&B offers
more privacy than your average guesthouse. There's only
one double room for rent, with its own lounge and
reception room with log fire and antique furniture. You
can also visit the
artis
t owners' studio or take a stroll
round the garden.
£80
Silvercraigs Caravan and Camping Site
Silvercraigs
Rd
T
07824 528482.
Centrally located overlooking town,
a small, no-frills campsite run by the council. It mostly
caters to caravans and motorhomes but it's possible to pitch
a tent here too. The facilities on offer include electric
conn
ecti
on, a pl
aygr
ound and self-service laundry.
Easter-
Oct.
£12
/pitch;
£18
/caravan
EATING AND DRINKING
Castle Restaurant
5 Castle St
T
01557 330569,
W
thecastlerestaurant.net.
An intimate contribution
to Kirkcudbright's small fine dining scene, offering
Scots-French cuisine in tasteful surroundings
overlooking the castle. Offering three courses for £20,
the menu might include smoked duck two ways, pairing
breast meat with smoked apple duck pâté and honey.
Mon-Sat 6-9pm.
Mulberries Coffee Shop and Chocolatiers
11 St
Cuthbert St
T
01557 330961.
The town's finest coffee,
cakes and chocolates are served in this cosy little café near
the harbour car park. The cream tea for £5 offers excellent
quality and value for money and coffee comes with free
refills.
Mon-Wed & Fri-Sat 10am-6pm, Thurs
10am-7pm, Sun 11am-6pm.
Selkirk Arms
125 High St
T
01557 330402,
W
selkirkarmshotel.co.uk.
One of the town's more
economical dining options; its wide-ranging menu
includes soup and soda bread for £4 and wholetail scampi
for £11.
Daily noon-2pm & 6-9pm.
Galloway Forest Park and around
he strange thing about Galloway is that while the area around the coast is all rolling
farmland, stately homes, sandy coves and estuarine mud flats, you only have to head north
ten or twenty miles and you're transported to the entirely different landscape of the
OPPOSITE
MULL OF GALLOWAY LIGHTHOUSE
P.155
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