Kippford to Rockliffe via Rough Island

The Causeway from Kippford to Rough Island. If you are going to go there its important you check the tide times as you could easily get stranded as the tide comes in so fast.

It was only Tom and myself yesterday so with a good forecast for the whole of the South of Scotland we decided to go to Kippford and with the tide times perfect to enable us to walk to Rough Island and then do the circular path to Rockliffe and back. We arrived there at 10.15am and as high tide was not until 3.00pm we had a window of about 2.5 hours to cross to Rough Island. You need a 2 hour window each side of low tide. This is Kippford at low tide. You are not allowed to visit Rough Island between 1st May and 31st July to prevent disturbance to beach nesting birds.   

The walk along the shore from the car park takes you to this area where a local resident has for many years displayed many figures like these. Its a great place to take kids to see the many interesting figures. 

The beach at Kippford composed almost entirely out of Cockle Shells 

The view from the highest point on Rough Island looking over to Heston Island 

Tom at the highest point on Rough Island with Rockcliffe in the background.

The view from Rough Island looking towards Screel

The village of Rockcliffe

Looking back towards Kippford. It was a perfect day and we finished with a lovely lunch at The Anchor Hotel and then tea and cake at Canonbie Community Cafe on the way home.

Glorious Galloway especially Rockcliffe and Kippford

Each year we like to do at least one walk on the Solway shore at Kippford so we headed off today and what a glorious morning it was. we parked up at Colvend where we had a walking holiday in 2017. We had walked a route from our holiday house then so we did it in reverse today heading first of all into Rockcliffe. Unfortunately the tide was out but the views were still stunning.  

This is the Island of Heston at the mouth of the Urr Estuary. I have never been able to walk out to it as it has to be done at extremely low tides from the other side of the estuary.  

We stopped for the compulsory group photograph in Rockcliffe village. Tom still has his walking stick but we bought an ice cream each at the van in the background and he left it there propped up against a litter bin. It was a mile to two later he remembered he had left it so we waited until we had finished the walk and headed back down to Rockcliffe to see if it was still there. Indeed it was as it had been given to the Ice Crean seller and he looked after it for Tom.  

This is Rough Island and it is easily accessible at low tide.We did not have time to visit it today but we have been over many times in the past. 

The walk between Rockcliffe and Kippford is one of the nicest walks in Scotland so we had a seat on the outskirts of Kippford village to admire the views. This beach is made up totally of sea shells. 

Millions of Sea Shells. I have never seen a beach like this anywhere else in Scotland

The River Urr at low tide in Kippford  

The last section of the walk from Kippford was through the Dalbeattie Forest. We planned to go back to Kippford for a bar meal after the walk but it was just a few minutes after 2.00pm and both the pubs in the village refused to serve us as the kitchens closed at 2.00pm. We headed back to Colvend and had a lovely afternoon tea in the small cafe there. 

A Boat Trip and a Dalbeattie Forrest Walk via Kippford & Rockcliffe

The morning started with John, Peter, Ken and myself going out on the Loch in the houses rowing boat. Talk about 4 men in a boat but it was great fun and hard work. Peter and John used the oars and Ken and I had the paddles. All the wild life soon disappeared due to the noise we were making. 

The two paddlers

John and Peter rowing like mad but unable to keep us in a straight line

Our first walk of the holiday was through Dalbeattie Forest and then down the coast through Kippford and Dalbeattie a distance of about 7 miles although 4 of us cheated and got the bus from Rockcliffe back to Colvend to save Martin from the long up hill.

I always love seeing these little people on the coast path at Kippford 

Niall & Elspeth on the shell beach at Kippford 

Martin & Tom

The walking party