Military Road, east of Glenluce Show path on map
Start location: A75, east of Shennanton Old Bridge ( NX 347 632 )
End location: Glenluce ( NX 204 577 )
Geographical area: Dumfries and Galloway
Path type: Military Road
Path distance: 17.3km
Accessibility info: Suitable for pedestrians
Route Description
Start from the A75 at NX347632 and follow the public unclassified road to NX334637 where the Old Military Road heads west as a tarmac road, becoming a tractor-rutted green track after the junction with the driveway to Barneight. There are several gates, and a river ford which could cause a problem when water is high. However, the underfoot conditions are quite good as grass (grazed) has grown up through the hard-core original road. This clear track, bordered on both sides by dykes, emerges at the back of Ardachie Farm.
South-west from Ardachie much of the route is harder to follow and we are told that to do so may involve climbing walls and cutting across fields.
OS Landranger 82 (Stranraer, Glenluce & surrounding area)
Heritage Information
This is part of a fascinating military road that was built by Major Caulfeild in the 1760s. The road originally stretched 105 miles from Bridge of Sark to Portpatrick; much of its line is still used today by the A75.
This section of the route can be hard to find - a part known to be more readily walkable lies nearer to Newton Stewart.
Further east, between Creetown and Anwoth, lies the section known as the Corse of Slakes.
Unlike all other military roads built in this period, this road was not built for the Hanoverians to gain advantage over the Jacobites but to aid troop movements to Ireland. Roy's Military Survey 1747-1755 shows that a route existed here before the military road was built; it is labelled as Road from Portpatrick to Minigaff and Ferrytoun of Cree &c to Dumfries. What happened was that those roads were reconstructed and realigned in places. Indeed it has also been suggested that much of the military road followed a Roman Road that ran from Glenlochar via Gatehouse of Fleet to Loch Ryan.
