Dumfries and Galloway – Knightshoots Landscape Photography

Dundrennan Abbey, Threave Castle and Feeding Red Kites

South West Scotland 2021: Part Twenty Two

26 September 2021

I woke up to realise I wasn’t going to get lucky with the bay this morning either. I had totally missed high tide, and the sky was covered with cloud again. A little disappointed, I basically just packed up and left.

My first aim was going to be Dundrennan Abbey. I arrived just before they opened, but as I looked at it, I realised it wasn’t going to be a shot for me today. Not only was it a pay to get into monument – which I don’t generally do unless its a site I’m really keen to visit – (I’d be super poor If I did them all!) but there didn’t seem to be a clear shot of it from any direction. With high walls, trees, and private land to one side. I took one cursory snap on the phone from the only spot with a clear view, then moved on to my next location. In hindsight, I could probably have gotten a formal shot from here, but to be honest, it didn’t really captivate me, and there’s nothing really wrong with my phone photo that my Canon would have made different.

Dundrenan Abbey, a very brief visit, and this is the only photograph I took.

My next spot was Threave Castle. This one was a really a nice location and had a lot of promise. For me today however, a strong breeze continually blew the small boat into a poor position, the sky looked grey – flattening everything and River barked endlessly at every passing pedestrian. This last one stressed me out terribly. My attention was so split, I missed a really gorgeous shot, which frustrated me even more. Hauling the dog in and making her look at me to curb her distraction, I sat and just waited for the boat to bob back from behind the tree, and the sun to try again…please?!. I tried hard for an hour to stop the frustration and stress getting worse, and eventually decided that I had waited long enough. I stood up to pack everything away when a brief glimmer of sun appeared, swept across the scene and was then gone for good. I barely caught it in two shots (one with light on the boat, and a second as it wiped across to, and over, the castle behind) This site needed something prettier going on in the sky I felt, a long exposure perhaps, to smooth an otherwise distracting water and definately a visit without River getting angsty! I left disappointed, but once I managed to blend the two photos I had, I think I feel a little better about this one.

Threave Castle. A sudden burst of sunshine really helped this shot!

On the day however, sadened, frustrated and getting fed up of the continual grey and a ratty dog, I left to go to the kite feeding station. There were bird hides at Threave, but I couldn’t visit those with River being this way, so perhaps seeing Kites in a controlled situation might offer a bit of bird spotting and a chance at trying bird photography. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but everyone here was lovely which helped my mood greatly. I paid my £5 entry and settled into a position outside to wait until the birds were hungry, while River settled under my coffee table staying relatively settled.

The people who run the farm, coffee shop and kite feeding sessions, put chunks of raw meet out at 2ish, and at first the kites didn’t seem interested. 20 minutes later I noticed that they had all started gathering above my head. There were so many it was almost scary! (see header) Watching Hitchcock’s ‘The Birds’ as a child, clearly has me traumatised to this day! As we waited, one suddenly dipped down to the raw meat, grabbing a bit in his talons and flying off somewhere to eat it. Then another…. and a third! Once the first few started, the others went for it and soon they all started swooping to the table and floor.

What a spectacular display!!!

I tried my hardest to capture these beautiful birds, filling my memory card right up, but I knew that nearly every shot failed due to my inadequacy as a bird photographer. I didn’t care though, I was just loving every second! When other spectators had their bird watching appetite sated, they slowly drifted away. But I stayed put, mesmorised by these magnificent creatures. Three hours flew past (literally!) and despite dropping temperatures and bouts of rain and I found myself staying until the coffee shop was nearly closed and I was the only one left.

Flying over my head, I managed one fairly decent shot of this Red Kite

As I packed up, the coffee shop lady came out and told me I could stay as long as I wanted, as several birds were still feeding. I was cold by now though and needed to be indoors for a few minutes. I bought a last chance cup of tea, and a slice of cake, and watched from the window for a short while. Then as the shop closed proper, I went for a brief walk around the hill next to the farm, not really wanting to leave these beauties, before I eventually left for the Dhoon.

I wanted a picture of a boat wreck that is apparently here, but when I arrived, the tide was very high. So high, I couldn’t see the boat at all. I made myself some tea, thinking to wait it out, but an hour later I realised that the tide seemed to go out much slower than at other areas around here. The boat could only really be gotten to when the tide was fully out… and that was now clearly unlikely to happen until after dark. I considered staying the night, but there were big posters everywhere asking people not to. Despite the Park for Night App having comments from people flagarently and boastfully ignoring them, I considered it a lack of respect since I knew I could find parking elsewhere for the night. Instead, I started my drive towards tomorrow’s locations.

Eventually finding myself tiring, I settled myself in a quiet lay by until I could continue in the morning.

My Adventures

Southerness Lighthouse, Rockliffe and Balcary Bay

South West Scotland 2021: Part Twenty One

25 September 2021

I awoke to more grim weather, but trotted around the car park with River just so she could go to the loo, and stretch her legs a bit. They had a chemical toilet disposal area here, fresh water, and grey water disposal. I didn’t need any of these, but what I did need was a bin… was there a bin? Nope! So I had to put Rivers’ morning poop in the camper bin – and as I drove, it fragranced the van in a not too pleasant way. *gag*(!!) Oh the pleasures of travelling with a dog eh?! LOL

After this delightful start, I drove to Southerness. This wasn’t originally on my map, but I had spotted a curious looking lighthouse and I had to investigate! It is listed as the second oldest lighthouse in Scotland, being commissioned back in 1748, and was built to an unusual square shape. I had high hopes of getting a nice reflection shot of this one!

It was Sunday, so I expected it to be pretty busy, but as I arrived here, I saw that it wasn’t too bad. There were several dogwalkers, and a few people dotted here and there, but not busy by any standards. Pretty much all that was here, was a golf club and a caravan/holiday park. I guessed there were a fair few bits to occupy most of the remaining holidaymakers that were still there, now the school holidays were over. I found space in the car park easily, and parked up next to a public loo with a doggy bin nearby. (You can pretty much guarantee I made a beeline for that!)

River happily plodded with me down the road to investigate the lighthouse and we were standing looking at it from the beach very soon after. Sadly, the sky was much the same colour as the lighthouse itself, which I immediately realised would hamper separating it from the sky. On top of this, the wind was quite strong – I could see this was going to be a bit of a challenge today. I had arrived at a good time with the tide though. This is definitely a spot for a lower tide, as it reveals the awesome rocks that form incredible jagged lines leading to the lighthouse. This is the spot to practice using the photographic ‘leading lines’ rule, for sure!! I wandered all over, looking at the tiny rock pool creatures, and loving all the different coloured rocks and algae. The reflection shots were very hard with the wind refusing to back down long enough to still the puddles, but I got one eventually and it did look quite good against the moody sky. Perhaps next time I would try and time it with less of a breeze and the tide slightly higher to give more water to the puddles. It would look much better and make for some incredible pictures I imagine. For today though, it was almost perfect, and totally fun to explore. This spot definitely surprised me. How did I miss this one off my original list?!!

I had a bit of lunch, then went to find a random spot, that I had just loved when I spotted someone’s painting (?) of it. OK. I knew it would be hard to find, but with careful scouring of the maps, landscape, and Google maps, I thought I might have a vague idea on where I might find it. I drove to the area I’d discovered, and just walked off in the rough direction praying I was right.

On the way, I passed some cows that had the same colouring as River, and the whole herd seemed to come over to a gate to explore this mini version of themselves. It was quite sweet to see the innocent and gentle curiosity from both sides. (see header) I continued the walk, rounding the headland and seeing the distant coastline gradually disappear into a mizzle cloud. Despite this, I pressed on, after all this was just going to be a recce mission, and if I was wrong then it would be a nice walk regardless. A few minutes later I excitedly found the spot I was after, and was over the moon that all the research had worked out! The view to the distance was pretty much obliterated by now however. All the same, I still felt that it was a good time to capture this photo because the bracken was all in bloom. I decided that now I knew exactly where this spot was, it was definitely one to come back to. It was going to need to be on this trip though – any other time of the year, and this beautiful yellow might not be here! A few minutes later and the mizzle hit my spot, so I quickly packed up and made my way back before it turned into full on rain..

After this, I aimed to try Balcary Bay to photograph the view across the bay with the castle in the background. Well.. what a disappointment this place was! I hoped to stay overnight to get a sunset and a dawn shot, but the car park clearly said no overnight camping. I was also sad to realise that there was very little here but a small beach (with a tide that was way too far out) and no castle at all. What I took to be a castle was in fact, a private house, and the only way to see it wasn’t at this spot anyway. I stayed less than fifteen minutes before I left. A little way up the road, I found a pull in spot instead, and the view from this angle was vastly improved.

Sadly, although the rain had eased off again, the evening had a heavy cloud overhead which obliterated any chance of a nice sunset. Similarly, although the tide was creeping in, it did so very slowly adding to my disappointment. There was no chance that it would get high enough before it fell too dark for me to get either, a hoped for reflection, or a smooth ethereal water effect. The whole scene just felt flat and grim. Another shot for another time I supposed, although, perhaps, there might be a nice sunrise?… I stayed there for the night full of hope…

What a naive wally.

Sunrise?! On THIS trip?!! 😂😂

My Adventures

Mennock Pass, Morton Castle, Crichope Burn, and Caerlaverock Castle

South West Scotland 2021: Part Twenty

24 September 2021

I have no idea when the rain stopped, but when I woke up in the morning, it was all very quiet. Waking up gently was an absolute pleasure after last nights hugely stressful trip. I washed and dressed and stepped out, finding myself in the most beautiful surroundings. My mind was a little blown I wont lie! Of everything that could have been around me, I wasn’t expecting THIS!

Waking up to this spot was a real surprise!

I quickly jumped back in Fred, turned him around and went outside again with my phone. I wanted to grab a quick photo to send to the family (well, I didn’t really want a pic of his backside for this lovely portrait did I?!) Whilst standing in awe of the position I was parked in, a couple of fleeting bits of sunshine shone down on Fred, luckily I caught one with my mobile phone. There was no real blue in the sky, it was still very grim looking, so this felt like a little nod from above as an apology for last nights trauma.

After this, the drizzle inevitably started. Despite the miserable weather I thought this area was worth having a good look at. I had ended up in the Mennock Pass, and as I drove down the winding road, I didn’t know where to look first- it was a real struggle to keep my eyes on the road! I spotted bike randomly on one of the hills, so stopped to try and take a photo of it (see header). It was no good though, the drizzle was so heavy that I simply couldn’t keep the lens clean and every photo looked awful.

I decided this was too beautiful here to miss out however, so made plans to come back on a better weather day. Looking at my map I decided to try and find Morton Castle to check that out instead, since it was not too far from here and very near another location I was dying to see.

Morton Castle as you first see it on the approach.

Morton Castle was a little tricky to find, but once there I really enjoyed my visit. The drizzle had eased off, but it was very, very breezy, and I was intermittently lucky to have a few bursts of light sweep across the location when I first arrived.

As I thoroughly looked over the site, I read that there was little known about its build. There are lots of discussions and debates, but the overall assumption seems to be that it was built in the 12th century. According to the infoboard, an agreement in 1357 stated that in return for the release of the Scottish King David III, the English expected a selection of castles on the southern border with England, to be ruined. Morton was one. Whatever date it was built, the castle went on be inherited or bought by quite a few Lairds for several centuries more, so there was still use here.

Had it been rebuilt or repaired to replace the ruined version? I couldn’t tell. Looking online, apparently archetectural evidence supports a build date of around the 1300’s. I wont lie, this leaves me as confused as all the authorities on the matter. It goes on to say that Morton was in disrepair by 1714, which is how we see it today. Oh, to be a time traveller and watch its history. It really is a lovely place, and if not a fortress, cetrtainly a wonderful area to set up home.

I wandered around the back of the castle where there is a small lake. I was hoping for a nice reflection shot here and I really think it has the potential to look nice, but today it was so windy and grey that a shot like this was definitely out of the question!

Tha back of Morton Castle, sadly wind and grim sky didn’t assist on my hoped for photo here.

I finally left Morton when the wind made it clear I wouldn’t get anything better than what I had in the bag, and I excitedly drove to a much anticipated location… marked in big letters and underlined on my map.

Crichope Burn.

This is a little saught after destination, and although a once popular Victorian hotspot, it seems to have fallen out of favour today. Its now visited mostly by photographers and vloggers only. Has that increased its popularity I wondered, but looking at the empty car park today, I guessed not! I found the car park here fairly easily, and then hunted for the path to the burn. That was not as obvious as you would imagine, but I did find the entrance to the walk after walking past it once. The sign post was very faded, but visible when I actually bothered to look closely.

The walk was fascnating. The first bit was a nice little wooded section, the path, although overgrown and not used in a while, was still fairly clear. I followed it and found myself near a rockface with grafitti on. As I looked, I realised the grafitti was all from the 1800’s! I spent ages looking at the names and dates, surprised and oddly reassured that our need to let others know we were here, was not just a modern vandalism. It is said Robbie Burns had visited this area, althouigh I couldn’t see his name among the other young men and women who scrawled their presence here.

Two of the most noticeable pieces of grafitti. Interestingly, I found a William W. Clarke, a commercial traveller born in Scotland, and his wife Charlotte E Clarke, living in Oswestry in the 1881 census… I wonder if they are the pair from the right piece…

Why this place had fallen out of favour was a surprise to me, and I mused on the thought as I followed the track further, and up a set of stone steps. When I found the spot I’d been excitedly looking for, I was both amazed and just a little disappointed. The path led up, and then thinned around a rocky prominentry. Curving round, the path then revealed a natural arch and a short gorge beyond. As I stood in the space under the arch, I just stared at the view. My amazement came because I was looking at what appeared to be a totally prehistoric landscape, with high moss covered rocks untouched by people, and looking very ancient.

My disappointment came because the much anticipated waterfall that should be here, was nowhere to be seen.

I still took some time taking photos though, because the lush green of the gorge here, just looked amazing. Then I had a bit of an explore a little further up and behind, to try and find the watercourse that should have led to the falls. There was nothing up there so I finally called it and decided to leave. This one was a definate location to come back to, and since it was only a little off route on the way up to my daughter in Glasgow, I was absolutely sure that I would get back here easily.

The ancient looking gorge at Crickhope Burn

Caerlaverock Castle was next, a beautiful red brick triangular castle that I was also keen to visit. The wind had eased and blue skies were appearing, so I had my fingers crossed for a pretty sunset at last, and drove to the location with a few hopes in my pocket. I parked up easily enough, but on getting to the gorgeous ruin, I found the water was covered in algae. The photos I had seen of this castle had a lovely reflection, but with this nasty green covering, no reflection was possible. I walked round the outside anyway, and found to my surprise that where the back had collapsed you could see there was a secondary brick building inside that looked pretty intact. I don’t think I had ever seen something like this taking up such a large area inside a castle before, and it looked very intreguing. I really wanted to go and have a proper look, but of course it was closed due to Covid, and the lateness of the day would have hampered a visit anyway. Such a shame! – but a good reason to come back.

On my return home, I couldn’t help but try and have an online ‘visit’ to find out about this one. To my joy, I found this site, with a link on the page that pretty much takes you in and around the castle! https://www.historicenvironment.scot/visit-a-place/places/caerlaverock-castle/overview/ Big YAY for modern technology right?!!!

Curious brick building taking up a chunk of space inside the castle.

As I completed my circuit, the sun set with the sky doing nothing exciting, so I could do little else but leave. Down the road, their overflow car park was allowing campers to stay for a donation. Since they had a toilet disposal point, this had been my intended stop for the night anyway, although I didn’t need this service tonight. When I arrived it was fairly full, and I struggled to find a spot where some had parked inconsiderately. Since I was just a small van though, I managed to squeeze into one last spot. There was nothing for a bigger motorhome, so I was thankful for my size! Despite the other vans here (at least 6), it was still a quiet night with everyone sticking to their own private spaces, and noone spreading out. It felt perfect here and I slept very well.

Dec 2021

I returned to Crickhope Burn just before my daughters graduation. It was going to be my first port of call and my impatience meant this was going to be a visit on my way up before I even got to hers! I drove up through a vicious storm the day before, and got to the car park late into the evening, deciding to stop here in the cover of the trees, for protection against the weather.

First thing in the morning, with the storm now gone, I jumped out and went straight over to see if the falls were here this time. Signs were good as I advanced, a boggy path, sizeable puddles to dodge around and the steps up to the last bit running with water almost like a small river. I climbed through the rocky arch to the precipice and was greeted with the roaring of falling water and this incredible view

This was EXACTLY what I had hoped to find, and the view took my breath away! I spent ages here taking photos. Although the space was quite restrictive, the small ledge still had a little movement to the left and right. Its pretty impossible to get any other angle, as the gorge was very slippery, and covered in damp leaves, but I did try what I could without being too silly. Taking a dunk off the edge was definitely not on the plan for today! Ohhh, what a happy bunny I was when I eventually pulled myself away.