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Southern Upland Way
The Southern Upland Way is a long-distance walking trail in Scotland, with its western half in Dumfries and Galloway region and its eastern in the Scottish Borders.
Understand
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The Southern Upland Way is a waymarked route opened in 1984, stretching 212 mi (341 km) coast-to-coast across the hills of lowland Scotland, from Portpatrick in the southwest to Cockburnspath on the North Sea coast. It's an "official" route, meaning the local council districts it traverses have a duty to keep it passable and waymarked. It's more demanding than the popular West Highland Way, since the stages are longer, crossing the grain of the land with much up-and-down. Many stage-ends lack accommodation and transport so you have to wild-camp, carrying all your kit and provisions. The route is of no great altitude but is often boggy and exposed, and seldom suitable for mountain bikes.
Allow 14 days for the route: since 2020 the record for completing it is 55 hours 42 minutes. It's usual to hike from west to east, to have the prevailing wind and afternoon sun at your back, though the western sections are longer and tougher. The east is more populated and bucolic, and closer to the cities of Edinburgh and Newcastle, so their folk bring the car for an easy out-and-back Sunday ramble then pick up the next section another time.
Prepare
[edit]Allow 14 days for the route: since 2020 the record for completing it is 55 hours 42 minutes. It's usual to hike from west to east, to have the prevailing wind and afternoon sun at your back, though the western sections are longer and tougher. The east is more populated and bucolic, and closer to the cities of Edinburgh and Newcastle, so their folk bring the car for an easy out-and-back Sunday ramble then pick up the next section another time.
Maps
[edit]Ordnance Survey publish a west and an east map of the route at 1:50,000 scale, plus OS "Landranger" 1:50,000 maps of sections, with map numbers given below.
- OS 72: Stranraer & Glenluce - Covers Portpatrick, Broad Moor, Castle Kennedy, and New Luce.
- OS 77: Dalmellington & New Galloway - Covers Bargrennan, Galloway Forest Park, and St John's Town of Dalry.
- OS 76: Dumfries & Castle Douglas - Covers St John's Town of Dalry to Sanquhar via Benbrack and Cloud Hill.
- OS 78: Nithsdale & Lowther Hills - Covers Sanquhar to Wanlockhead and Beattock.
- OS 79: Moffat & St Mary's Loch - Covers Beattock, Ettrick, and St Mary's Loch.
- OS 73: Peebles, Galashiels & Selkirk - Covers St Mary's Loch to Melrose via Blake Muir, Traquair, and Yair.
- OS 67: Duns, Dunbar & Eyemouth - Covers Lauder, Lammermuir Hills, Longformacus, Abbey St Bathans, and Cockburnspath.
Get in
[edit]Portpatrick at the start has buses every hour or so from Stranraer, which has trains and buses from Glasgow and ferries from Belfast.
Galashiels and Melrose to the east are on a busy transport corridor.
Cockburnspath at the finish has a bus every couple of hours from Berwick, heading to Dunbar and Edinburgh.
Walk
[edit]
Portpatrick - Castle Kennedy
[edit]- Distance
- 13 mi (21 km)
The Southern Upland Way begins at the harbour in 1 Portpatrick (mile 0), where there are several hotels and B&Bs. Start at the harbour and follow the clifftop north for 4 miles then turn inland. Cross B738 then over Broad Moor. At Ochtrelure (mile 8 on the edge of Stranraer) turn south to Little Lochans then continue east. 2 Castle Kennedy (mile 13) is on A75 but has no accommodation.
Castle Kennedy - New Luce
[edit]- Distance
- 7 mi (11 km)
Head through the park by the ruined castle, the trail parallels the lane towards 3 New Luce (mile 20). The waymarked trail branches east to bypass the village, but accommodation here breaks up a lengthy stage. New Luce has a pub with rooms.
New Luce - Bargrennan
[edit]- Distance
- 18 mi (29 km)
Take the lane east to rejoin the main trail, north through forest over boggy Artfield Fell, past a bothy and the Laggangarn standing stones. After about 13 miles the way turns east, descends to B7027 at Knowe then parallels the lane northeast to 4 Bargrennan (mile 38). Bargrennan is on A714 and has accommodation.
Bargrennan - St John’s Town of Dalry
[edit]- Distance
- 25 mi (40 km)
The next long stage crosses the rugged country of Galloway Forest Park. Follow forest tracks up Glen Trool then across the flank of Lamachan Hill, where the watershed is marked by a stone carved with runes. Descend into the Dee valley: White Laggan is a bothy, but you need to bring everything to sleep or cook. At Mid Garrary the route is crossed by a lane where you could arrange a pick-up You then cross the flank of Meikle Millyea to descend into 5 St John's Town of Dalry (mile 63). St John's Town of Dalry may have accommodation (probably closed in winter) and a sporadic bus to Dumfries.
St John’s Town of Dalry - Sanquhar
[edit]- Distance
- 26 mi (42 km)
The next stage is even longer and more exposed than the previous. You tramp north past Knowehead (crossing B729) to the 581 m summit of Benbrack, decorated by a sandstone arch. Descend to Polskeoch (with a bothy, and reached by a lane) then northeast across the well-named Cloud Hill to 6 Sanquhar (mile 89). Sanquhar will feel like a buzzing metropolis by comparison, as it's on A75 and the Glasgow-Kilmarnock-Dumfries-Carlisle railway, and has accommodation.
Sanquhar - Wanlockhead
[edit]- Distance
- 8 mi (13 km)
The route ascends northeast past Conrig Hill and Glengaber to 7 Wanlockhead (mile 97). Wanlockhead is Britain's highest village, at 1,531 ft (467 m), and has accommodation. Lead was mined here in the 19th century, and the miners' cottages and beam engine still stand.
Wanlockhead - Beattock
[edit]- Distance
- 19.5 mi (31.4 km)
The route trends southeast across Lowther Hill, topped by a giant radome, and A702; a mile beyond this you pass the halfway mark on the Southern Upland Way. Descend past a bothy and camping area into 8 Beattock (mile 117), where you cross the Annandale Way. Beattock is on A701 and A74(M), pounding with traffic at all hours. It has accommodation but there's more at Moffat two miles north
Beattock - St Mary’s Loch
[edit]- Distance
- 20.5 mi (33.0 km)
The route is northeast by either a high or low route (crossing the watershed between Irish Sea and North Sea drainage) to join the lane down to Ettrick; there's a bothy at Over Phawhop. Then a short ridge brings you to Tibbie Shiels at the west end of 9 St Mary's Loch (mile 138). St Mary's Loch is on A708 and has camping areas, though Tibbie Shiels Inn closed years ago.
St Mary’s Loch - Traquair
[edit]- Distance
- 12 mi (19 km)
Follow the east side of the loch and at its far end cross A708: Dryhope Tower is a 16th century peel tower. Ascend northeast over the flank of the Hawkshaw Rigs to the summit of Blake Muir at 1,532 ft (467 m) then descend to 10 Traquair (mile 150). Traquair is an attractive small settlement but has no accommodation: for this, divert two miles north to Innerleithen, which is on A72 with buses on the Galashiels-Peebles-Edinburgh route.
Traquair - Yair
[edit]- Distance
- 13 mi (21 km)
Resuming at Traquair, head east along old cattle drovers' trails over Minch Moor and Brown Knowe 1,719 ft (524 m) towards the Three Brethren, three giant cairns. Descend by forestry trails to 11 Yair (mile 163). Yair has accommodation and is 2 miles north of Selkirk.
Yair - Melrose
[edit]- Distance
- 5 mi (8.0 km)
Cross the low ridge towards Galashiels, transport hub for the Borders and with accommodation. However the route skirts town on Gala Hill and descends onto A7: Abbotsford House across the river is the grand mansion of Sir Walter Scott. Follow the south bank of the River Tweed to 12 Melrose (mile 168). Melrose is a pleasant small town with a ruined abbey, and another nearby plus several stumps of old castles. Plenty of accommodation, and transport on the Jedburgh-Galashiels route.
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Melrose - Lauder
[edit]- Distance
- 10 mi (16 km)
The route is straight north along an old drovers' trail, much of it now a tarmac lane, so it's easy going to 13 Lauder (mile 178). Lauder is a village with accommodation on A68 with buses between Jedburgh, Melrose and Edinburgh. Thirlestane Castle is the mansion at its south edge.
Lauder - Longformacus
[edit]- Distance
- 15 mi (24 km).
The route is east across the Lammermuir Hills via Twin Law at 1,467 ft (447 m), marked by two large cairns at the summit, and Watch Water to 14 Longformacus (mile 193). Longformacus has no accommodation, the nearest is in Duns 12 miles south.
Longformacus - Abbey St Bathans
[edit]- Distance
- 6.5 mi (10.5 km)
Head east by farm and forestry trails to 15 Abbey St Bathans (mile 200). Abbey St Bathans likewise has no accommodation.
Abbey St Bathans - Cockburnspath
[edit]- Distance
- 11.5 mi (18.5 km)
Cross the ridge northeast to the busy A1 at Penmanshiel, then north besides the railway to the North Sea coast. There's a short clifftop section then turn inland to journey's end at 16 Cockburnspath (mile 212, pronounced "Koh-burns path"). Cockburnspath is on the A1 and has accommodation. The Borders Bus potters along the road every couple of hours from Berwick to Eyemouth, Cockburnspath, Dunbar, Haddington and Edinburgh.
See
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Waymerks are small metal tokens concealed in thirteen "kists" hidden along the route: you're near one if you spot an "ULTREIA" sign, a Latin greeting for pilgrims. Help yourself to a merk if you find one, but please only take one. They're individually crafted and may be of lead, copper or pewter, or you hit the jackpot if you find one of silver. A merk was a medieval Scottish coin, abolished in 1707 upon the union with England: 13 of them made one English penny, so there's probably a sly anti-Scots joke there. A kist or cist is a prehistoric burial chamber. The original installation was in 2001; a new hoard was deposited in 2007 and the kists have been intermittently topped up since.
Stay safe
[edit]Standard advice for hill-walking: prepare for cold wet weather from above and boggy going below. Some sections are indistinct and the mist can roll in at any moment, so you need navigation skills. The route is quiet, on old cattle-drovers and forest tracks, and you may not see anyone all day. However mobile phone coverage is fairly good since there are no mountains to block the signal.
Go next
[edit]- The Pennine Way from Edale in the Peak District has its north terminus at Kirk Yetholm. There isn't a trail onward to join SUW, which feels like a missing link. With proper maps you can easily find your own route, either via the coast at Berwick or by heading north to Longformacus.
- The coastal path heads south past Cockburnspath to the dramatic cliffs of St Abb's, Eyemouth, across the border to Berwick-upon-Tweed, Lindisfarne, and on down the coast of Northumberland.
- It heads north to end at Dunbar, start of the John Muir trail back across the Central Belt via Edinburgh to the west coast at Helensburgh.
- Near Loch Lomond the John Muir Trail intersects the West Highland Way, which goes to Fort William, for the ascent of Ben Nevis and start of the Great Glen Way to Inverness. You could be at this for some time.
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