Dumfries

Friday, June 18

Thanks to our hostess, we were able to spend a couple nights in southern Scotland, staying with a co-worker of Lou’s. The trip north in a rented Hyudai gave us a taste of British motorways—way too similar to freeway travel in the States. It took most of the day to crawl past bottlenecks, congestion, and rest stops. When we finally crossed the border into Scotland at Gretna, we let out a hearty cheer. Almost immediately, the landscape changed. Gone were the hedgerows in favor of dry-stacked stone fences.

Clare and Ronald live in what was originally the quarrymaster’s house in Gatelawbridge just east of Thornhill a few miles up the road from Dumfries proper. We were most impressed by the stone spiral stairs in this fort-like dwelling.

Clare makes linocuts for Lou’s cards. Ronald publishes guides to walking the British Isles. They cook delicious meals on a wood stove.

Our gracious friends gave us many helpful pointers for our next day’s trip.