13 September 2022
13 September marked my birthday and three months minus a day from the date of my ankle surgery. The surgeon had suggested three months as a sensible time to start trying some more challenging walking in boots. Certainly when I had tried rather prematurely on my Anglesey trek three weeks earlier, it had been too soon!
My husband and I were making our way northwards following our viewing of the Severn Bore spectacle in Gloucestershire. We had decided to break our journey for a couple of nights at Lockerbie in Dumfries and Galloway only a few miles over the England / Scotland border. My initial plan for map 84 adventure had been to walk to a tidal island in the Solway Firth but on perusing tide times for during our stay, that wasn’t going to work. In addition some websites mentioned wading even at low tide and I was sure that my husband wouldn’t do that. Hence the decision to reach the summit of Criffel – it’s only 569m high but, being the highest hill for miles around, it dominates the area and provides a stunning viewpoint.
There appeared to be two ways up – a direct route of only three miles return and a more interesting 7-5-8 mile route from the village of New Abbey. I decided to tackle the latter, particularly as it was a sunny, dry and warm day.
We parked in the large car park adjacent to Sweetheart Abbey. The Abbey is closed to visitors at present due to some building safety issues. However this meant that Historic Scotland had decided to allow free access to the outside cloister area along with information boards. The Abbey was founded by Lady Dervorgilla of Galloway in the thirteenth century as a Cistercian Foundation. Her husband and sweetheart, John Balliol, agreed to provide funds for scholars studying at Oxford following an argument with the Bishop of Durham. After his death, further endowments by Dervorgilla led to the foundation of Balliol College. Lady Dervorgilla carried her late husband’s embalmed heart in an ivory casket from his death in 1268 until she died in 1289. She was interred along with her late husband’s heart, in a site in front of the great altar of the abbey she had founded, hence the name “Sweetheart Abbey”.
There was a short walk along the main road and then up a side road past a mill. Soon we were on uneven ground which was a challenge for my ankle, even in walking boots. A scenic gradually rising forest track followed and after walking for an hour we had our first five minute rest.
We seemed to be the only walkers on the hill until we turned right off the track to ascend steeply up a stony but well-made path adjacent to a stream. Suddenly we saw several more people making the ascent, including an active-looking woman wearing a pink T-shirt. I encouraged her to overtake, citing my recent fracture.
We passed some very impressive toadstools in the woods before reaching open ground. I actually had to pause to let my husband catch up. However, with my sights on the summit, I forged ahead again and realised that the lady in the pink T-shirt wasn’t getting any further ahead of me.
As I had stopped to take photos and to wait for my husband she was, of course, at the summit when I arrived. She was due to lead a walk there at the weekend so familiarising herself with the route. She talked of experience in Canada and Europe as well as UK although explained that after an Achilles tendon rupture had lost confidence initially and not walked on mountains for a year. However reassuringly she was now back to “normal”.
My husband reached the summit to join me and we spent some time taking in the magnificent views, extending south to the Lake District including Skiddaw. Views towards the Southern Uplands had also unfolded during our ascent.
Our initial descent followed the ascent route but soon we turned off along a boggy and uneven path to a prominent cairn and more impressive views on the summit of Knockendoch.
From this point I struggled and proceeded slowly over a steeply descending, boggy path which was also strewn with rocks. However, all bad things come to an end and I reached a better path and then a forest track. From that point it was just a case of navigating through a maze of forest tracks back to the end of the lane where our ascent route had turned off the road.
Safely back in the picturesque village, we were in time to enjoy coffee and cake sitting outside in the back garden of the small cafe, with views towards Sweetheart Abbey.
The magnificent views are certainly worth the climb and it was quite an adventure for me to complete my first hill walk of any significance since my ankle fracture and notably on my birthday as well.
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