Art

The weather isn't improving but Joey and I head out anyway with no fixed idea of where we're going. In Moniaive I see a sign to the Striding Arches; it sounds intriguing but the road is blocked by a timber wagon so we carry on. A stroll around New Galloway Forest Park was pleasant enough, but it was still raining and we weren't really having fun.

We decided to head back with a view to lighting the fire and reading the paper when I remembered the Striding Arches, so we turned off to see what there was to see. After about 5 miles the road ceased to be road and became muddy track. 2 miles further on and the road was blocked by a barrier. Still no sign of what we had come to see. And then I saw the notice board. We had found art - high up in the hills in the Cairnhead Forest.

Andy Goldsworthy has been busy creating four massive stone arches in the hillside. This one is built through the byre of an abandoned farm and is the only one accessible by road. To get to the others you need to march. The next nearest from here is a 6 mile round trip and as time was getting on we dismissed that idea pretty quickly. A shame because if I'd known what was here, then we could have come prepared. There's always next time.

But what a result - art in the middle of absolutely nowhere. I was really pleased to have seen this one piece and had a big grin for the rest of the drive back to Leadhills.

Heading back south tomorrow; 4 nights away disappears all too quickly, but its been fun.