Lochcraig Head

Overview

Lochcraig Head is an impressive summit...

But does not get the attention it diserves as the main Moffat and Manor Hill summits of Hart Fell, White Coomb and Broad Law get the better.
This is a shame as can be seen from the primary ID-Picture i have attached it has some lovely crags that overlook the lake of Loch Skene that then feeds into Tail Burn and the waterfalls of The Grey Mares Tail.
The summit of Lochcraig Head is over 800metres but it is not a Corbet only a Donald as the drop in height between Lochcraig and White Coomb is not enough to qualify it a Corbet status.

18th of March 2007 The day we did this summit was very cold...
Tempratures including the windchill were about -15degrees and the wind was gusting to levels of at least 70-75mph.
Watching the snow being blown by the wind off the edge of the hills was really good and some of the snow had been blown into stunning shapes on the mountain walls.
It was strange the way it turned as cold as it did because the day previous we were on the Ettrick hills with drizzle and windy conditions but the cold struck overnight to create all the fascinating effects as in the pictures i have attached.

As with all the Moffat Hills this is a wonderful area and anyone going here for fun on the hills will enjoy it.
The best route to start from is the Grey Mares Tail waterfall and head up via Tail Burn, Mid Craig or White Coomb but the number of routes up can be combined with many other tops. The choice is yours...

Getting There

Getting to the area could not be easier.
From the West.
By Motorway the main Carlisle / Glasgow A74(M) come off at Junction-15 onto the A701 for the town of Moffat.
Moffat is a beutiful little traditional Scottish border town with lots of character. It has many a fine hotels and some lovely little B&B's.
The town has all the sort of shops you would need before a day out on the hills.
When you are done in Moffat take a road signposted A708 to Selkirk and St Mary's Loch. Well you just follow this road through to any place you wish to start near the Grey Mare's Tail Waterfall. If you park at the Grey Mare's Tail car park there is a fee for using the car park as this is a National Trust for Scotland site.
From the East.
This area is easily reached from Newcastle via the A1 then the A696/A68 to the Border County. From here travel Hawick then From Hawick take the A7 to Selkirk then the opposite to above in that you take the A708 Signposted Moffat and St Mary's Loch.
By Train the nearest rail station to Moffat is Lockerbie on the main Carlisle to Glasgow line.

Red Tape

The Scottish FREE TO ROME RULES apply here...!
So you can go anywhere at your will as long as you do not damage fences and gates or chuck your rubbish on the floor as i hate people who do that. Other than that ENJOY...!

Camping

There are camping sites available around the towns of Moffat and Selkirk.
Also it is not a problem with camping in some areas along side the lakes of St Mary's Loch and Loch Of The Lowe's.
Caravan sites can best be found via the internet as i am never one for caravaning.
For hotels and B&B's Moffat has it all as does Selkirk, Peebles, Hawick also Galashiels and alot of the other fine towns of Dumfries and Galloway and the Scottish Border County.

External Links

For the local weather reports and a five day forecast follow this link.
BBC - Weather
For hotels B&B and more in the town of Moffat follow this Google search page.
MOFFAT - Hotels Bed and Breakfast

Images

View Lochcraig Head Image Gallery - 14 Images