Hill walking route onto Cairnsmore of Fleet from Murray's Monument and Dunkitterick Cottage Page 1

Hill walk routes to climb in SW Scotland - also coastal paths and National Scenic Areas with maps, pictures and other useful information based on extensive local knowledge
Cairnsmore of Fleet from Murray's Monument and Dunkitterick Cottage Page 1
Cairnsmore of Fleet Routes Map - Tourist Route - Murray's Monument Route Page 2 Clints Route - Site Homepage - Other Galloway Walks - Map of Galloway

Murray's monument (above) is a monument to Alexander Murray, a shepherd's son, who was born at Dunkitterick Cottage in 1775. He was Minister of the Parish of Urr in Kirkcudbrightshire. In 1812 he was apponited professor of Oriental Languages at Edinburgh University. He died in 1813 and was buried in Greyfriars churchyard there.

The map on the right shows 2 routes onto Cairnsmore of Fleet from what is known as the Queen's Way which runs from New Galloway to Newton Stewart (A712). The parking for Murray's Monument is at NX490721 and for Dunkitterick Cottage is at NX503722 The pictures below show the location of these two parking place as viewed from Craignelder. The first picture is as you see it coming up from Dunkitterick and was taken in 2000. The second picture shows the start of the route up from from Murray's monument and this one was taken in November 2005. Between these 2 dates much of the forest in the top picture has been cut down. Murray's Monument is just out of the picture on the left in the top picture. We took seven and a quarter hours from Dunkitterick Cottage to Cairnsmore and back




From Dunkitterick you have to come up through the firebreak and then through where the trees used to be, as in the picture below which is a view from the firebreak looking back to the craggy form of the wild goat park.

Whichever of these two ways you come up onto Craignelder the terrain is rough, irregular and difficult, with deep bracken and heather over a boulder strewn hillside and outcrops of rock slab. This face of the hill is north facing and does not get the sun in winter so those rock slabs can easily be covered in ice and are well worth avoiding, as are the inevitable hidden holes that you usually get on boulder hillsides. I tore ligaments in my right knee in just such a hole near the Grey Man of the Merrick - with a two hour walk out from there to the car park. Fortunately Sandy had a stick with him that day. The picture below shows Sandy just coming onto the top of Craignelder: there are the rock slabs, and that is Clatteringshaws above him. Relate this to the first two pictures above and you will understand the layout. The going is a bit easier if you keep well over to the edge of the Gairy and the views are great from there anyway. The second picture below shows some of the wild goats - which don't necessarily stay in the park! - with Cairnsmore beyond them, taken from the Big Gairy looking across the front of the Flesh Market.


Below is a view of the Flesh Market itself. The picture below it on the right is taken from near the red asterisk - looking down over the Gairy. The bottom left picture is among the rocks of the Flesh Market. For information on the rock climbs at the Flesh market click here. For more pictures of the Fleshmarket area see Extra Pictures


Continued on Page 2
Extra Pictures
Cairnsmore of Fleet Routes Map - Tourist Route - Murray's Monument Route Page 2 Clints Route - Site Homepage - Other Galloway Walks - Map of Galloway