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Dumfries and Galloway

The Annan Shore Walk

A shore walk at Annan on the Solway, past Waterfoot, the old port where emigrant ships once sailed for North America.

Welcome

The shore walk at Annan follows the edge of the Solway, where saltmarsh gives way to wide sands and big skies, and the sunsets can be spectacular.

Boards along the way tell the story of the town's life by the sea.

At the centre of that story is Waterfoot, where the River Annan meets the firth. From 1780 to 1848 it was a busy port. Emigrant ships, schooners and brigs, sailed from here for North America, and later steamers ran passengers and cargo to Liverpool from two jetties built in 1819. In the 1850s fishermen from Morecambe Bay brought shrimp trawling and salmon netting, and by 1900 seventy boats worked from the shore.

The walk is free and open at all times. Keep to the path on the tidal shore.

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The Daily for 2 November, from Scotland with love. Cloud shadows cross a sunlit mountain above a loch, rust-coloured moorland stretching below
A short drive awayThomas Carlyle's BirthplaceThe small house in Ecclefechan where the writer Thomas Carlyle was born in 1795, built by his father and uncle and open since 1881.9 min by roadSee itCottage room with black cast-iron range, tartan mantel and spinning wheel beside the window
Before you go

Open at all times.

The shore is tidal; keep to the path.

Where
Annan, on the Solway, DG12 6SQ.
Passes
Waterfoot, the old port.
Story
Emigrant ships to America.

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Where it is

From the town of Annan down to Waterfoot on the Solway shore, DG12 6SQ.

Close byAnnan.
  1. Annandale DistilleryAnnandale DistilleryWhisky near Annan.1 mile 4 min by road
  2. The Devil's Porridge MuseumThe Devil's Porridge MuseumWartime history at Eastriggs.5 miles 9 min by road
  3. Gretna Green Guided TourGretna Green Guided Tour8 miles as the crow flies
  4. Handfasting at Gretna GreenHandfasting at Gretna Green8 miles as the crow flies
  5. Wading birds flock on shallow water, wings raised, reflected in golden lightWWT CaerlaverockGeese on the Solway.14 miles 20 min by road
Directions
Cottage room with black cast-iron range, tartan mantel and spinning wheel beside the windowAttractionsThomas Carlyle's Birthplace5.7 miles
Friends raise their tasting glasses round a barrel table at the First Sip of Scotland.ActivityThe First Sip of Scotland, Gretna Green7.9 miles
Visitors reach for samples at the First Taste of Scotland, jars and sauces on the counter in front of them.ActivityThe First Taste of Scotland, Gretna Green7.9 miles
A woman beams as she holds up the pair of entwined iron hearts she and her partner have forged.ActivityThe Couples Experience at the Gretna Green Forge7.9 miles
Three people in leather aprons and gloves work hot steel at their own anvils in the Gretna Green Forge.ActivityThe Smithy Experience at the Gretna Green Forge7.9 miles
The blacksmith works the big iron coin press at the Gretna Green Forge while a visitor in a striped jumper looks on.ActivityThe Forge Experience at Gretna Green7.9 miles
Bottle of Nith Inshore Rescue rum on a stone bridge above the riverAttractionsNinefold Distillery8.1 miles
The whitewashed Famous Blacksmiths Shop at Gretna Green under a clear blue sky, with flowers in a planter by the road.AttractionsGretna Green Famous Blacksmiths Shop8.8 miles
The Big Dance, the giant steel clasped hands, in the Gretna Green square at sunset, with the black-and-white shops on the left and a crow on the cobbles.AttractionsThe Big Dance (the Clasping Hands), Gretna Green8.8 miles

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