Annandale

Mr Flum needed to visit the Moffat Mill for a brand apparently no longer available in town. For the first time in many journeys, neither of us bought anything!

Along the drive there we could see the cloud drifting up the Annan valley towards the Devil's Beef Tub below us and we met the bulk on our road, with only 50m visibility, until it thinned as we descended to the town. We had never driven up the valley, so after our failed shopping trip, took the opportunity to investigate these Mists Of Lower Annandale.

Uncertain whether we were entitled, we continued past the farm at Ericstane towards Corehead, stopping partway at a parking area, where a map of the hills displayed walking routes of various lengths, including the signposted Annandale Way; however we were not intending a long walk, being sartorially unprepared. 

My main ambition was to catch nice atmospheric photographs of the mist in the valley - by the time we stopped most had retreated away to the north and the sunshine had hidden behind a cloud. I had caught a few along the way, which appear as the main photo, extra taken near our parked car, across a frozen pond with enough reflection to balance the composition.

In both photos Devil's Beef Tub itself lies behind the rising ground to the left foreground - it is the fact of being so well hidden that gave rise to its use by the Reivers to conceal stolen cattle before being sold.

We returned to the main A701 but took cross-country route home via the B719, B7016, A702, B7078 to Uddington and the A70 to home.