Southern Upland Way - Portpatrick to Bargrennan

The Southern Upland Way is Britain's first official coast to coast long distance foot-path. It runs 212 miles (340 km) from Portpatrick on the south-west coast of Scotland to Cockburnspath on the eastern seaboard. It offers superb and varied walking country, still undiscovered by many enthusiasts.

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Friday 16 May 2014 - Portpatrick to Knockquhassen Reservoir
The old man (my father) dropped us off at Portpatrick Harbour about half past 3.  We took a few snaps before making our way up the cliffs.  We walked along the coastal path for about two and a half hours before following the minor road for the rest of the way.  It turned out to be a nice evening.

We continued walking late into the evening and eventually about 9pm we came across Knockquhassen Reservoir which turned out to be a good spot for some wild camping. 

Saturday 17 May 2014 - Knockquhassen Reservoir to Beehive Bothy
We were up at the crack of dawn, the rain had appeared overnight, light showers mostly.  We took down the tents and got everything packed away before making our way to the anglers hut to make Breakfast.  We set off in the rain, returning to the Southern Upland route.  The rain soon calmed down and it stayed dry for the rest of the day.

A couple of hours passed and we reached the outskirts of Stranraer, then it was minor roads and some woodland trails before arriving at Castle Kennedy. 

Once at Castle Kennedy we stopped for supplies at the Petrol Station before making our way down to Castle Kennedy Gardens, where we had lunch.

We soon made a start on the long hike to Beehive Bothy, passing through some boggy fields, woodland and moorland.  We saw some old farmhouse ruins.  We eventually reached Beehive Bothy around 7.30pm, in plenty of time to get organised and have a bite to eat before dark.  Nobody else was around. 
It soon got dark and we attempted to get a small fire going.

Sunday 18 May 2014 - Beehive Bothy to Bargrennan
Up bright are early, we had a quick Coffee in the bothy before heading off on the next stretch towards Bargrennan.  It had stayed dry through the night and for the remainder of the day.  The path through the forest in the next section was difficult to follow due to missing waymarkers in the demolished forest.