The Southern Upland Way: Scotland's Coast to Coast

Over Lowther Hill, the highest point of the Southern Upland Way, to Brattleburn Bothy

Sunday 8th April
Wanlockhead to Brattleburn Bothy


What claims to be the highest pub in Scotland	Statue

As we leave the lotus lodge and pass through Wanlockhead, we notice the unusual street names of the town such as Moor Edge and Gold Scour Row. There is also a Wanlockhead Inn which serves bar meals. Being at 1500feet makes for a chilly morning. We pass some large black water filled boxes designed for tourists to play panning for gold. There's many things to see in Wanlockhead, but not for us as we head off on one of our longest days today of 16 miles. The Way passes out of Wanlockhead by some new build houses with sheep grazing around them. Come to think of it sheep seem to have the run of the entire town. Some cheesy sod has pinned they're own letter box onto a SUW waymarker! One of the builders tells us that it is one of the guys who is building his house further down, and that he is a cheeky sod for attatching it to a post like that.


A note on waymerks showing all the different waymerks and on what section they can be found.	The SUW passes out by the Wanlockhead museum which has public toilets. Unfortunately for us today is Easter Sunday and the whole museum and toilets are closed.


We climb out of the valley steeply and look back to see an aerial view of Wanlockhead with the great slag heap in the background.	We notice all the hills around us are patterened with strips of heather and moorland.

Our first challenge of the day is to climb Lowther Hill to the great golf ball and the highest point of the SUW. Through a gap in our hills we notice a reservoir. On the two neighbouring hills we notice that there are great masts, and wonder if they are linked to the giant golf ball. The path joins the service road to the big golf ball which is radar for air traffic control. In the midst the big ball emerges and disappears continually.


The road leading up to the golf ball has snow post with reflective sides	In the distance we notice a reservoir nestled amongst patterened hills.


Looking back towards Wanlockhead we notice how crammed into the valley it is.	The golf ball, highest point of SUW

Well its a great football like structure, and really does just look like a big leather football close up. There's a pattern on the surface, with some of the plates darker than other ones. We seek cover around the other side of this thing as there is quite a wind blowing up here. It sure is chilly! There's some metal cables attatched from the ground to the top of the ball, which strain under the force of the wind to stop the ball from flying off the hill. We think we can hear the radar mechanism moving inside, though its hard to here with the wind making so much noise. There's a host of other wee antenae dotted around the main golf ball, all shivering in the wind. This is the highest point on the SUW! Although the SUW is not supposed to go across the very top of the hill due to this being privately owned, we find that we've missed a turn-off onto path somewhere and follow the road to the top. This means we have to scramble over a fence to get onto the route proper again.


Views over the other side	Starting our descent

We descend Lowther hill in the chilly wind, and find it to be pretty busy, probably because its Easter Sunday. We encounter several groups of walkers on the way down. Jo takes some shelter from some quite fierce wind while Alan stops to take some panaramic photographs. We seem to have lost the good weather again today, and the sky is covered with clouds getting blown across at high speeds. The patterened moors surround us as we descend. The path meanders up and down as it descends, and at one point ascends very steeply seeing us struggling with our large packs. We see frog spawn laid in a marshy wet area of the path, and also see a few grouse hopping around the place.

Once down its along an NSL road before going in at the Pontrenick River intake. We find the road quite hairraising with its lack of pavement, just a shoulder of thick grass to walk on.


We leave the road by the Potrenick Burn and follow the burn across to the plantation forest.	Logging causes route to be diverted from the forest track onto a parallel specially made side path.

We gratefully turn away from the road and follow a river a short way across to where it meets Watermeetings Forest. This area is newly planted with mixed varieties of trees. Near the path we have a corridor of Silver Birch trees surrounding the path and nearby Benuff burn, surrounded by the more typical coniferous plantation. Seems that they are trying to make a wildlife corridor next to the way. This point marks the half-way point for the entire SUW! We give ourselves a pat on the back.

We join the forest track, only to be diverted onto a makeshift path running parallel to the track. This is due to the logging which takes place beside us. They work to clear the trees from the opposite valleyside, and we can see the stacks of logs that they have already felled. We notice that all the trees have been planted in nice little neat rows here and that felling them causes the area to look stripped like a ploughed field. We wonder what kind of machine they use to take of the side branches of the trees, and if these side branches have any use.

On leaving the forest we enter sheep pasture once again, and find that the wind has not calmed down and chills us greatly. We take a short stop to fill up on water, but even a short stop chills us to the bone. Alan eases himself into the middle of the Burn, while Jo observes that the rocks he is standing on look rather slippy. Alan consequently manages to give his right foot a dunking. We look forward to some shelter when we re-enter the forest plantation and make plans to take a lunch break as soon as we find a sheltered spot. Although we soon enter some forest again, it doesn't seem to shelter us from the wind, as it is always open on one side, and the forest track is always surrounded by a wide treeless, shelterless strip. It takes us a few miles before we find any shelter that will keep us out of the wind, this spot being behind a wall at the daer Reservior.

Interestingly enough, we see a notice board here explaining the changes in law made with the land reform act. We are suprised to learn that this allows access to water as well as land. The notice explains that although we are now allowed to swim in reservoirs, the water board does not encourage this as in some areas of the reservoir where there are undersurface currents this could be dangerous or life-threatening.


We traverse the sheep pasture and wonder why a beast of a machine is digging holes here.	We reach the dam of the Daer Reservior and shelter behind a wall for some lunch.


The SUW takes us along the dam of the resevoir before climbing straight up the opposite hill.	The hill tops are covered in brown grasses and we can see back to Lowther hill, now looking rather distant.

We huddle up behind the wall of the dam gaining as much shelter from the wind as possible while we eat some lunch. We tuck into the last of our pasta while talking about spars, jacuzzis and platters of delicious varied food.

After Daer the way takes us on a circumnavigation of several hills which is most picturesque in the evening sun, with stunning views back down to the reservoir, and back to the Western Lowther hills. Its still very windy, and Jo's rucksack cover gets blown away. Luckily Alan manages to rescue it from behind a dry stone dyke. Jo starts to sing in good spirits and manages to keep up a good pace.


At the top of the hill we follow the crest of the hill beside a dry stane dyke.	Looking back, the sun shines brightly across the reservior.


Evening sun	Down a wide firebreak which affords view of the valley ahead.

We continue round the ridge of hills for about 3 miles before taking a left straight down a fire break in the trees. The trail really has a great sense of adventure here as we scramble down a steep wide firebreak in the forest, with the valley ahead in view. Alan comments on how the SUW has this good sense of adventure to it that the other trails seem to lack. Jo is still enthusiastic and feels she could go on an extra 5 miles to the campsite at Beattock, which Alan rather stupidly pronouces "buttock". Alan doesn't feel the need for a shower so is quite happy to stay in the bothy tonight. We wonder if this burst of energy is due to the double helping of hot chocolate drank at lunchtime. We continue down the firebreak, which Jo reads in her guidebook is the course of some gas pipes.

On reaching the bothy we find ourselves sharing it once again, this time with someone who calls himself the Actoman. He is also doing blogs for his adventures, and has done the West Highland Way, with a live video blog as he travels. He is very keen to regail us with all the details of his equipment. He does seem to have a lot of kit with him, especially kit brought with him in the just in case sense but which won't be used. He is carrying a pack which weighs about 20kg, compared with our 11kg packs each. He carres all kinds of excess stuff on him, including an extra bottle, sandels and various freebe lotions and potions.

We find the bothy generously supplied by previous bothy stayers. We indulge in some shortbread and crisps. We have a go kilning the fire. We find the Acotman shares our philosophy of reversing the meal cycle and having a large meal early on in the day.

Brattleburn bothy

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The Southern Upland Way: Scotland's Coast to Coast

Over Lowther Hill, the highest point of the Southern Upland Way, to Brattleburn Bothy

Sunday 8th April Wanlockhead to Brattleburn Bothy

Sunday 8th April
Wanlockhead to Brattleburn Bothy