::Thursday 17th May 2007

CAMBRET AND CAIRNHARROW

The concluding walk of the 2007 Festival for those who have stayed the course over the previous six days is a straightforward linear walk on open moorland and over five relatively easy tops.

This area is of historical importance with an abundance of remains and sites that are worth visiting, and it is hoped that a local amateur historian will be able to come along and give the group the benefit of his knowledge.

The group will be transported from Newton Stewart through Creetown using the Corse of Slakes Old Military Road and a short walk leads to the top of Cambret Hill easily identified by the large radio masts. A few hundred metres downhill is an important prehistoric complex with a cairnfield, a round cairn and an adjacent stone circle with ten stones remaining. Just standing amongst these remains can trigger the imagination into wondering what happened here thousands of years ago. There are a number of interesting sites on the way to Cairnharrow, the highest point of the walk at 456 metres.

This is an ideal spot for lunch, giving the perfect vantage point to appreciate the views overlooking the Cree Estuary, the Mull of Galloway, Isle of Man and the Cumbrian Fells.

A kilometre further south takes us to Barholm Hill and an easy descent leads to the road that takes us back to our pick up point but a visit to the Chambered Cairns at Cairnholy is certainly worth an extra kilometre before being taken back to Newton Stewart.