For today's route the road parallels the shore for most of the day. The tide is against us from mid-morning so our options will be limited. There is a 2.5 mile cross-country section starting at Auchenmalg Bay and finishing at Stairhaven (Stairhaven Coastal Circuit). The final section coming off from Stairhaven is on a quiet, local road coming in to Glenluce from the south-west. The initial part of the walk is at sea level, rising to nearly two-hundred feet on the Stairhaven section.
As we are moving on today from our accommodation it meant walking with full packs, including ample water and food supplies. There are few, if any settlements on the first half of the route. There is a pub shown at Achenmalg but we are not sure if it is still in business.
Luce Bay was used extensively by RAF from the 1930's to 1990's, to practice bombing activities. It is still a licensed MoD range, under the auspices of QinetiQ. In 1915, RNAS Luce Bay was used to build and house a new airship station. There were four ships based there, mainly used to escorts ships. The station was closed in 1918, re-opening in 1938 as RAF West Freugh.
Just off the coast, anchored in Luce Bay and with her sails are tucked away, was the sailing ship we had seen yesterday off the Fell of Carleton. There is an interesting direction post on the harbour, pointing to various major destinations across the seas. Beside the sign, a massive bronze statue by Andrew Brown, of a man gazing out to sea. A small plaque to the front of it has a short verse by W H Davies "What is this life if, full of care, we have no time to stand and stare."
Thought to have been built around AD 900's / 1000, the site was probably a stop off place for Irish and other pilgrims who used the nearby bay to land on their way to St Ninian's Chapel at Isle of Whithorn. The chapel is named after an Irish saint, thought to have been a tutor to St Columba.
You also need to be aware that there are fairly free-ranging cattle on the path and off to the sides. They were quite placid when we walked past them, which was a nice change for us. On a sunny day like the one we had the views are magnificent and, despite the travails, excellent hillwalking.
On the area above the Mull of Sinniness is the Longforth Standing Stone. Although it stands alone in the vicinity, evidence has been found in the immediate area of pre-historic tool working. On the descent going down to Stairhaven there are the remains of what was thought to be a broch, one of only three to have been found below the highland line. Just before the location of the broch, higher up the hill, are the scant remains of the 16th C., Castle Sinniness, now part of a local farm steading. The castle is thought to have been built by one Archibald Kennedy at the end of the 16th C and was still being used in 1684.