Curly Wurly: the tangled together caramel strands in their cheerful purple wrapper make a chewy snack for any hillwalker. And the hill called Curleywee is exactly the same. Apart from not being coated in delicious low-cocoa-solids milk chocolate. Link it with the smooth, grassy Lamachan Hill and the even smaller, even ruggeder Mulldonoch for a lively and enjoyable outing above Loch Trool. But first you've got to get onto the things… Spruce plantations, and regenerating wildwood surrounded with a tall deer fence, defend the slopes above the loch. There is one route, devious but do-able, using the remains of a long-forgotten forest track through scrubby undergrowth. Bring a pair of secateurs, as a few snips will make things easier for yourself while helping keep this path open for future walkers. Once on the open hill there's scrambly outcrops, an airy ridgeline, and the chewy snack of Curleywee – "to be enjoyed as part of a healthy, active lifestyle."
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Detailed description
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Difficulty: DifficultDistance: 12 miles (19.30 km)
Total ascent: 931m
Time: 6 – 7 hours (Walking)
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Additional Information
Start/Finish:Bruce's Stone, Loch Trool, NX415805
Nearest town:
Newton Stewart
Terrain:
Forest tracks, then rough grass with scrambly outcrops, and a grassy ridgeline.
Seasonal variations:
Rough grass on descent is at its worst August, September. Any snow in Galloway is likely to be slow going, soft and untrodden.
Weather and Hill Conditions: mwis: Southern Uplands
Public transport:
Not that useful. Occasional school bus service to Glentrool village.
Guidebooks:
Walking the Galloway Hills by Ronald Turnbull (Cicerone, 2019)
Maps:
OS Explorer 318 (1:25,000), OS Explorer 319 (1:25,000), OS Landranger 77 (1:50,000) Directory Listings:
Find more Listings near this route Tourist info:
Newton Stewart (01671 402 431)
Further Routes
by Ronald Turnbull
- The Cheviot: Border Ridge and Hen Hole biggie 14 Feb, 2023
- Windy Gyle from Coquetdale 17 Jan, 2023
- Loch Enoch, Galloway Hills 30 Aug, 2022