"Forest trails lead to the site of Robert the Bruce's turning point during the bitter Wars of Independence"
Walk directions
Leave the car park and follow the Southern Upland Way markers. Cross the bridge over the Water of Trool. Cross another bridge over the Caldons Burn. Next, take a left turn on to a footpath (Southern Upland Way) that runs along the banks of Pulharrow Burn. Cross over a bridge.
Follow this well-waymarked trail and at a fork by a waymarker turn right, and then head uphill and into the forest.
Keep on the path uphill and through a clearing, then go through a kissing gate and re-enter the woodland. Continue along the southern side of Loch Trool until you reach an interpretation board near the loch end. This marks the famous spot where Robert the Bruce and his army cleverly lured the superior English forces into a well-planned ambush and routed the enemy.
Follow the path from here, leaving the woodland and heading downhill and to the left, before leaving the Southern Upland Way. Turn left, go through two gates and over a wooden bridge. Cross the bridge over Gairland Burn and continue. Eventually reaching the bridge over the Buchan Burn, cross over and take the path to the left, branching off uphill.
Follow this to the top and Bruce’s Stone, which was raised to commemorate the victory at the Battle of Glentrool, the first victory in the Independence Wars. From here, looking across the clear waters of the loch to the tree-clad hills opposite, is one of the finest views in Scotland. Follow the track past the stone then turn left on to the narrow road. Continue for around 1 mile (1.6km). When you reach a green footpath sign (Loch Trool Circular), turn left onto a forest trail, and take this to return to the start of the walk.
The year 1314 is etched deep in the Scottish consciousness with Robert the Bruce's famous victory over the English forces at Bannockburn regarded as the culmination of the Wars of Independence. But Bannockburn was not the end of the conflict and it could be argued that an earlier skirmish, when the... two nations clashed at Glentrool, was a far more important step on the road to independence. In the early 14th century Robert the Bruce was advancing his claim to the Scottish throne. He murdered his rival claimant, John the Red Comyn, in Greyfriars' Church, in Dumfries and launched a series of attacks on the English in the southwest. He was crowned King of Scots at Scone on 25 March 1306, but following a series of defeats he fled to Rathlin Island, off the Antrim coast, where he regrouped before returning to Scotland early in 1307. After attacking English forces in Galloway, an army was dispatched to capture him, but this wild and inhospitable part of Scotland was Bruce's home territory and he set up an ambush. Using a small part of his force to lure the English on to the southern shores of Loch Trool, he concealed the bulk of his men on the slopes above the loch. The English were forced to dismount and follow in single file and, when they were at their most vulnerable, the Scots blocked the path and hurled a barrage of heavy boulders down on them. This was the turning point in Bruce's fortunes and he went from here to further victories against the enemy, culminating in the Battle of Bannockburn. Edward I then counterattacked between 1317 and 1319, seizing Berwick, a town of great strategic importance on the border. In 1322 the Scottish nobility appealed to the Pope to support independence in the Declaration of Arbroath. Support was granted in 1324 and in 1328 England finally recognised Scotland as an independent nation in the Treaty of Edinburgh.
Dumfries and Galloway is a wonderfully undiscovered corner of Scotland – a romantic land of wooded glens, high hills and exposed moorland, haunted by its colourful past and the ghosts of those who fell in fierce and bloody battles. Heading west from Gretna Green you soon reach Dumfries, straddling the River Nith, where you may see red-breasted mergansers in summer.
"Forest trails lead to the site of Robert the Bruce's turning point during the bitter Wars of Independence"
Walk details
2hrs 30min
Difficulty:
Easy
Gradient:
Gentle
Distance:
6 miles (9.7kms)
Ascent:
581ft (177m)
Walk directions
Leave the car park and follow the Southern Upland Way markers. Cross the bridge over the Water of Trool. Cross another bridge over the Caldons Burn. Next, take a left turn on to a footpath (Southern Upland Way) that runs along the banks of Pulharrow Burn. Cross over a bridge.
1 of 5
Follow this well-waymarked trail and at a fork by a waymarker turn right, and then head uphill and into the forest.
2 of 5
Keep on the path uphill and through a clearing, then go through a kissing gate and re-enter the woodland. Continue along the southern side of Loch Trool until you reach an interpretation board near the loch end. This marks the famous spot where Robert the Bruce and his army cleverly lured the superior English forces into a well-planned ambush and routed the enemy.
3 of 5
Follow the path from here, leaving the woodland and heading downhill and to the left, before leaving the Southern Upland Way. Turn left, go through two gates and over a wooden bridge. Cross the bridge over Gairland Burn and continue. Eventually reaching the bridge over the Buchan Burn, cross over and take the path to the left, branching off uphill.
4 of 5
Follow this to the top and Bruce’s Stone, which was raised to commemorate the victory at the Battle of Glentrool, the first victory in the Independence Wars. From here, looking across the clear waters of the loch to the tree-clad hills opposite, is one of the finest views in Scotland. Follow the track past the stone then turn left on to the narrow road. Continue for around 1 mile (1.6km). When you reach a green footpath sign (Loch Trool Circular), turn left onto a forest trail, and take this to return to the start of the walk.
The year 1314 is etched deep in the Scottish consciousness with Robert the Bruce's famous victory over the English forces at Bannockburn regarded as the culmination of the Wars of Independence. But Bannockburn was not the end of the conflict and it could be argued that an earlier skirmish, when the... two nations clashed at Glentrool, was a far more important step on the road to independence. In the early 14th century Robert the Bruce was advancing his claim to the Scottish throne. He murdered his rival claimant, John the Red Comyn, in Greyfriars' Church, in Dumfries and launched a series of attacks on the English in the southwest. He was crowned King of Scots at Scone on 25 March 1306, but following a series of defeats he fled to Rathlin Island, off the Antrim coast, where he regrouped before returning to Scotland early in 1307. After attacking English forces in Galloway, an army was dispatched to capture him, but this wild and inhospitable part of Scotland was Bruce's home territory and he set up an ambush. Using a small part of his force to lure the English on to the southern shores of Loch Trool, he concealed the bulk of his men on the slopes above the loch. The English were forced to dismount and follow in single file and, when they were at their most vulnerable, the Scots blocked the path and hurled a barrage of heavy boulders down on them. This was the turning point in Bruce's fortunes and he went from here to further victories against the enemy, culminating in the Battle of Bannockburn. Edward I then counterattacked between 1317 and 1319, seizing Berwick, a town of great strategic importance on the border. In 1322 the Scottish nobility appealed to the Pope to support independence in the Declaration of Arbroath. Support was granted in 1324 and in 1328 England finally recognised Scotland as an independent nation in the Treaty of Edinburgh.
Dumfries and Galloway is a wonderfully undiscovered corner of Scotland – a romantic land of wooded glens, high hills and exposed moorland, haunted by its colourful past and the ghosts of those who fell in fierce and bloody battles. Heading west from Gretna Green you soon reach Dumfries, straddling the River Nith, where you may see red-breasted mergansers in summer.
