Walking in Dumfries and Galloway - Colvend Coast

The Dalbeattie and Colvend area is one of the most beautiful and diverse in Dumfries and Galloway with scenery ranging from forest to woodland and from saltmarsh to rocky coast. The area is also home to the town of Dalbeattie, the picturesque coastal villages of Rockcliffe and Kippford, and the popular Sandyhills beach.

The variety of habitats support an abundance of wildlife. Red squirrels are a common sight, colourful dragonflies skim the surface of lochs and birdlife abounds. Look out for sparrow hawks, peregrine falcon perching on rocky outcrops and the many waders such as oystercatcher feeding on the mudflats.

The area is particularly renowned for its rich diversity of butterfly species including the small copper, pearl bordered fritillary and purple hairstreak. Plant highlights include the shimmering carpets of bluebells in May and the tapestries of tiny coastal flowers such as English stonecrop and birds foot trefoil during June and July.

Those interested in archaeology can visit the Iron Age fort sites of Mote of Mark and Castle Point
on the coast near Rockcliffe. The town of Dalbeattie provides a good range of services and Rockcliffe has been a choice holiday village since Victorian times.

Make Baron's Craig the base for your walking holiday

Acknowledgements and © Notice:
The walking information on this web site is reproduced by kind permission of Dumfries & Galloway Council and Dumfries & Galloway Tourist Board.
Photographs are © Keith Kirk, photographer and writer. Further information on walks and natural history in Dumfries and Galloway is available on Keith Kirk's web site.