Dumfries & Galloway's Best Kept Secret...

...South West Scotland's Forgotten Corner

Don't Miss This in Leswalt...

• Aldouran Glen - walk past the playing fields in Leswalt and you will encounter the sensory gardens, a community project with ponds and flower beds planted by the local school, scout and guide groups. Carry on through and you can walk on a boardwalk over a marshy pond area which is rife with dragonflies and damselflies in the summer. There is a hide on the edge of the woodland and the woods are managed by the Woodland Trust. There are paths through the wood and the bluebells here are not to be missed.

Nearby Places to Visit...

• Lochnaw Castle - the ancestral seat of the Agnews, built in the 15th century. Lochnaw hosted a millitary hospital in the war years.
• Marian Tower - heading north from Leswalt on the B798 is a 19th century white monument called Marian Tower. The tower may have been a memorial to a local girl killed by a bull but other reports claim it was Sir John Ross (a local arctic explorer) who built it in tribute to one of his family. Whatever the reason for its construction, it remains a family landmark in the North Rhins.
• Agnew Monument - this castellated monument is built on the site of an iron age hillfort known as the Tor of Craigoch. It was constructed to commemorate Lochnaw Castle's Sir Andrew Agnew (hence the name) in 1850. Sir Andrew Agnew was once an MP for Wigtownshire as well as leader of the Teetotal and Sunday Observance societies. There is a car park by the monument and a path leading up to it, the short climb is well worth it for the views over Loch Ryan and Stranraer. Close to the car park you may spot the remains of one of the many antiaircraft guns that protected Loch Ryan in World War Two.
• Larbrax/Broadsea Bay - a nice sandy beach, best accessed from Killantringan Bay (see Portpatrick) if you don't mind the walk, as the track down to it is very bumpy and gated at two points. There is an Iron Age fort above the bay and various other sites of archaeological interest.
• Galdenoch Castle and Salt Pans Bay - those of you with an OS map of the area will notice a 'P' sign right by the 16th century Galdenoch Castle - if you park here you can have a look at the ruined tower and then walk down to the shore. On your way to Salt Pans Bay you will pass a small loch which often has geese and ducks on. You will also pass through the breeding ground of Red Deer so is probably best avoided during the rutting season. Salt Pans itself is an SSSI protected sandy bay overlooked by an Iron Age fort and towering rocks.