Apparently, when in this area of Scotland, you cannot leave without a visit to the Mull of Galloway, Scotland’s most southerly point, so we decided that we’d make that our first destination once settled in Portpatrick. After a lovely breakfast at the hotel, we started on our journey to the end of the world.
The majority of the drive down was uneventful until the standard road gave way to a single track road. I’m quite used to driving on them now, but it’s still stressful, especially when your car has a massive blind-spot thanks to great big, thick A-Pillars! We didn’t meet much traffic but the road was rough in places and toward the end, very close to the cliffs. So, it was a relief when we finally reached the car park.
First up we had to grab our rain jackets as the skies were threatening on one side, and bright and blue on the other. The wind was blowing a gale! We started off on the path to the visitors centre at the end of the promontory to find out more about the area. We found ourselves in a long coversation with a volunteer at the centre about travelling, and being off the beaten track as well as learning about the local birds and geological features.
Back out on the promontory we had great views of Scotland (across the way) and England (the Lake District) and a small outline of Northern Ireland, but we coouldn’t see the Isle of Mann, which apparently makes and appearance on clear days. We wandered around the cliffs, taking photos, even having a look at the old Foghorn. I wasn’t game to head down the steep steps though, so we settled on pictures from a distance!
As well as the visitor’s centre, there is a large Stevenson lighthouse, with a museum next door. That was our next stop. It is only a small museum, but it includes a few videos as well as the engines for the foghorn. It used to take three men to sound the horn via three engines! Now the lighthouse is controlled remotely from Edinburgh.
By now we were a little peckish, so we headed to the final of the three atttractions at the Mull of Galloway, the cafe. The cafe is set into the side of the cliffs, and with one wall entirely made up of glass, it offers views across the sea to Ireland while you eat.
The cliffs behind and below the cafe are amazing – so rugged and steep! Before leaving we decided to have a bit more of a wander down to the more rugged of the cliffs, in the cow fields. Pausing for photos, I got a bit more of a shock than I bargained for when the wind knocked me slightly, but enough to touch the cattle fencing, which was electric! Ouchies.
The trip to the Mull of Galloway really was as good as everyone promised it would be, the only way it could be better was if the weather was clearer, as it was we still had the half sunny, half cloudy effect as we left. With our minds and cameras full of the views we headed back down the single track road (with a lot more oncoming traffic) and up to Portpatrick to regroup for the afternoon.
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