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On Friday 13th September
2002 my wife and myself entered Scotland off the M6. At Gretna we turned
left on the A75 and into Dumfries in Galloway. At Castle Douglas we turned
left onto the A745 and A711, the coast road that take us to Dundrennan
Abbey. This is where Sir Patrick Maclellan was buried at Threave Castle in
1448. The abbey is a beautiful well kept monument.
Motoring on we entered Kirkcubright and there
at the junction of Castle Street/High Street, proudly stood Maclellan
castle, next to the Greyfriar church, holding the bones of Maclellan.
We were staying at Toad
Hall, the "official" Maclellan Guest House, and about 25 yards from the
castle. On a visit to the castle I jokingly asked the guide if as
Maclellands we received free entrance, she looked up and with a wry grin
replied "We can give you a bill for the upkeep of your castle, as its been
a long time since we had any money from your clan". The castle is
fantastic and very well maintained, as is the little Greyfriar church next
door. The only tomb we were allowed to see was that of Sir Thomas
Maclellan and his child bride.
On Saturday, after a huge Scottish breakfast,
we drove along the A75 through Newton Stewart and turned right onto the
A714 for Loch Trool. At the head of Loch Trool is the Bruce stone,
celebrating Bruce's victory over the English troops.
Looking westwards from the loch the view was
unbeatable and the Galloway forrest park superb.
After another huge breakfast on Sunday we
drove home. Will we return? You bet we will, many times!
Note: This was sent in as a hand written
letter so please excuse any errors due to me not being able to read some
of the words.
   
Bruce's Stone
| Castle Maclellan
| Dundrennan Abbey
| Loch Trool |
