Over the border

Our destination in Scotland is Castle Douglas where we are staying for three nights.  We were recommended the Douglas House B&B by our friend who now lives here and our reason for visiting this part of Scotland .  The B&B is run by a lovely lady called Linda and it's dog friendly so Max has been able to come with us too.

After checking in we went for a walk round the town centre of Castle Douglas which is a small 18th century market town.  There are lots of independent shops, a pop up artist shop which sells arts and crafts made by a variety of people from all creative backgrounds including paintings, glass work, textiles and more.  I've also come across a craft shop which I haven't ventured in yet but will do so before we leave and also a lovely fabric shop.  We did stop for a drink and cake at The Mad Hatter cafe.

Another dog friendly place and they even brought Max over his own bowl of water.  Inside the cafe they have a display cabinet with lots of Alice in Wonderland teapots, China mugs and tea sets - I was very tempted by one of the sets but again have resisted so far.

Our friend who lives here now wasn't finishing work until later in the evening so we had a chance to explore the local area a bit more.  Castle Douglas is very close to the northern end of Carlingwark Loch which is absolutely beautiful and just a five minute walk from our B&B.

It's a freshwater loch and in years past when it was frozen over they held curling competitions for the Queenshill cup on there.  There is a circular walk around the loch which is about 3.2 miles, a future walk maybe.  There are four artificial islets which are indications of fortifications and settlements with various artifacts found including a bronze cauldron and sword.  More recently an aerating fountain was added to prevent the build up of blue-green algae.

  Nearby there is a carvan and camping park, what a beautiful place to be able park your mobile home and wake up in the morning with this on your doorstep.