Day 21 - Airdrie to Silloth

We left our small but comfortable B & B room in Airdrie and made for the town of Moffat.  I remember mum and dad coming here on one of their visits to Scotland and saying how nice it was.

Moffat is a lovely touristic town and there is quite a lot to do.  Parking is free and unlimited all along the central section of the wide main road.  The town was originally linked to the wool industry. 

 
The Ram statue at Moffat

 
Moffat Church

 
The narrowest hotel in the UK

 
Clock tower on shop

 
Street in Moffat

 
Residential street in Moffat


 
Moffat Town Hall

We had coffee in a nice little coffee shop and visited the Moffat Wollen Mill outlet centre as well as looking around the shops.

It was lunchtime when we left Moffat so we decided to drive on a bit and find somewhere quiet to park.  We made for Locherbie which also looks a very nice town.  We couldn't find anywhere to park and Paul didn't want to walk again so we tried to find a park but there was no car park.  We then saw a sign to the memorial garden.  We soon realised that it was the site of the houses destroyed in the Locherbie Air disaster in 1988.  It is now a massive bed of flowers in a residential street in thr town.  

 
Memorial Garden at the site where the PanAm flight crashed in 1988

We arrived in Silloth at about 3pm, had a rest then went for a walk.   It is a very quiet resort on the Solway Firth.  Looking over the estuary is the county of Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland.  

 
Looking over the estuary to Scotland

 
Silloth beach looking north

The main streets are very wide and made of cobblestones and some unusual shops.  The buildings along the main road are typical seaside houses with 3 or 4 floors.  First impressions are that it seems quite an affluent town and very clean.  The vast majority of properties are well cared for and manicured with beautiful gardens.  The first buildings of the town were built around 1850.  The streets were wide to allow a horse and cart to turn. 

 
Pillarbox cover celebrating VE Day

 
The Bank, bistro.  Former home of Kathleen Ferrier (1912-53) who was a 
famous contralto singer who lived here.

 
Wide and cobbled streets of Silloth

There is a huge area of grass, gardens and woodland (called The Green) opposite the Guesthouse and then a wide promenade.  Even though it was incredibly warm today there are not many people about.

 
Grass area looking towards the houses and church

 
Lighthouse model on the green

 
The lifeboat station

 
Fir trees - they are all leaning to one side, presumably due to the winds here

 
Ken and Bettys diner - incorporating an amusement arcade on the sea front.  
They do soft ice creams so no doubt we will be paying them a visit.

We had dinner at the guest house as they also have a restaurant.  A really good tasty meal followed by lemon possett.  We needed a walk afterwards so went for a walk in the opposite direction to this afternoon.  Here we saw an old Victorian lighthouse and a nice wooden statue of a man and his dog staring across the Solway Firth.  We waited until sunset and took some photos then walked around different street to this morning.  There are a large number of churches, or former churches, for a town of this size.  We found a small RAF club which offered entrance to non members in exchange for a donation to their charity.  We gladly paid up and had a nightcap.  Just before going into the club we witnessed a "Murder of Crows" in which hundreds of them flocked together before settling in the trees to roost for the night.  At first I though it was starlings but their noisy calls gave them away.

 
Victorian Lighthouse

 
Little shelter at the sea front

 
Statue of man and dog looking over the Solway Firth

 
Sunset over the Solway Firth

 
One of the many churches in Silloth

 
 
Crows gathering and then settling into the trees.


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