The Circular Walk Round Loch Trool —
waterfalls, a battle, and a cafe worth timing your walk around
Distance
9km / 5.5 miles
Time
2.5–3 hrs walking
Difficulty
Moderate, waymarked
Dogs
Welcome throughout
From the lodges
~45 mins by car
A bit further afield than most of the walks we send guests on, but worth the extra time in the car: forest, waterfalls, a loch that changes character every few hundred yards, and a battle fought eight hundred years ago that most people driving past have no idea happened.
Loch Trool sits inside Galloway Forest Park, about 45 minutes from the lodges up through Newton Stewart. It is a proper day out rather than an hour’s stretch of the legs, so we would suggest giving it at least half a day once you count the drive there and back, the walk itself, and a stop at the cafe.
Starting out
There are two places to park, and it is worth knowing the difference before you set off. We started at the 7 Stanes Centre, which has toilets and plenty of space, but realised fairly quickly that it puts you some distance from the loch itself.
The map at the trailhead, showing the full circuit round the loch
Where to park
The 7 Stanes Centre has toilets and more space, but it is a fair walk from the water. If getting to the loch quickly matters more to you, there is a smaller car park further along, right by where the Pulharrow Burn meets the loch.
Whichever car park you use, look out for the fingerpost marking the Southern Upland Way and the Loch Trool Circular.
The signpost at the start, and Cameron and Tilly heading out
Along the burn, and the battle you can’t quite see
The route follows the Pulharrow Burn along the bottom of the loch, tracking the Southern Upland Way. It is a genuinely beautiful stretch, and towards the far end of the loch you are walking through the site of the Battle of Glen Trool, fought here in 1307.
The information board telling the story of the Battle of Glen Trool
The battlefield itself is hard to make out on the ground. It is marked on the map, but we could not really place it just by looking.
Robert the Bruce, heavily outnumbered with around 300 men against some 1,500 English cavalry, used the steep ground around the loch to draw them into a trap they could not fight their way out of, one of the early wins on the road to Scottish independence. The stone commemorating it was put up in 1929, and we will come to it shortly.
Right at the bottom of the loch, where Glenhead Burn comes in, there is a bench that makes a good spot to stop. That is as far round as you can get before the path starts working its way back along the other side, and one thing that surprised us: it does not hug the loch shore the way you would expect, it runs higher up the bank for a good stretch.
The bench at the bottom of the loch, where Glenhead Burn comes in
Up past Buchan Waterfall
From here the path climbs up past a series of waterfalls, including Buchan Waterfall, worth the short detour to look at properly.
Buchan Waterfall, just off the path
Beyond the falls, the path meets a proper track, which carries you on towards the cafe.
Tilly enjoying the track on the way to the cafe
The Wriggly Tin Cafe
This is worth timing your walk around. The Wriggly Tin Cafe sits right on the route, with good food and properly friendly staff, and dogs are welcome inside, which ours appreciated as much as we did — there are dog treats too.
The Wriggly Tin Cafe, and the flowers planted in an old wheelbarrow outside
Good to know
There is a bunkhouse on site as well, and if there is no one around to book you in, there is an honesty box — not something you see very often these days.
Robert the Bruce’s stone, and back to the car
Past the cafe you reach the stone commemorating the battle, a proper monument rather than the information board you saw earlier.
The memorial stone to the Battle of Glen Trool, put up in 1929
From there, the path takes you all the way back to the car park.
The route
Park at the 7 Stanes Centre or the smaller car park by Pulharrow Burn, and follow the waymarked circuit round the loch — around 9km / 5.5 miles, two and a half to three hours of walking.
Everything you need to know
Starting point
7 Stanes Centre (toilets) or the smaller car park by Pulharrow Burn
Distance
Full circuit, around 9km / 5.5 miles
Time
Two and a half to three hours of walking
Difficulty
Waymarked paths, tracks and a short stretch of road — some up and down
Dogs
Welcome throughout, including inside the cafe
From the lodges
About 45 minutes by car, via Newton Stewart
Food
The Wriggly Tin Cafe, roughly halfway round
Make a day of it
Allow at least half a day for the drive, walk and cafe stop
We came away thinking this is one to build a proper morning or afternoon around rather than fit in alongside something else, and the cafe roughly halfway round makes that easy to do without planning too hard. My brother, who is fit and does this sort of thing often, still came back, had a drink, put the fire on, and was in bed early. That is the kind of tired this walk leaves you, the good kind, the sort that has you sleeping well.
If you are staying with us at Gatehouse Luxury Lodges and fancy a walk with a bit more scale to it than our usual local suggestions, Loch Trool is worth the drive.
