Days Out

Needles Eye near Sandyhills Beach

Sandyhills Beach on the Solway Firth

22 Barend

The nearest beach, Sandyhills, is only a short 10-15 mins walk from the lodge along a quiet road.

It’s a large sandy beach, warmed by the Gulf Stream, so popular for paddling and exploring rock pools. It’s great for walking at low tide.

⚠️ The tide can move very quickly so we recommend you check the tide times.

To get there, turn left from Barend Holiday Lodges and stay on that road to the ‘T’ junction. Cross the road into the car park, then access the beach to the left of Sandyhills Bay Holiday Park.

Sandyhills Beach, looking across the bay
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The Devil’s Porridge

22 Barend

37 miles ~52 min drive | Mon – Sat 10am – 5pm, Sun 10am – 4pm | Adults £7, Concessions £6, Family Ticket £16

An intriguing name, we’ve driven past this museum a few times and had to look up what it was!

This state of the art, award-winning, 5 star-rated museum tells the story of HM Factory Gretna, the United Kingdom’s largest munitions factory in World War I, where there were 30,000 workers: 12,000 of them women.

Booking in advance is recommended during the summer and school holidays.

Contact, Links & Reviews

www.devilsporridge.org.uk

01461 700021

info@devilsporridge.org.uk

Location & Parking

Stanfield, Annan Road,
EASTRIGGS,
Dumfries and Galloway
DG12 6TF

Stargazing in Galloway’s Dark Skies

22 Barend

Galloway Forest Park – not far from Serenity 22 Barend – was designated the first Dark Sky Park in the UK by the International Dark-Sky Association. In 2009 it was only the fourth in the world; there are now over 100 worldwide. It’s a Gold Tier park for its dark skies which make for breathtaking and rare stargazing conditions.

A Dark Sky Park is a place with exceptionally dark night skies, where there’s a commitment to control light pollution.

Very few people live within the boundaries of Galloway Forest Park, so there’s very little light pollution and the nights are extra clear.

The region covers 300 square miles that are protected from light pollution. Thousands more stars are visible compared to a typical town or city.

You can see over 7,000 stars and planets with the naked eye, including the Milky Way stretching across the sky. There’s a new show every night as we travel round the sun and get a constantly changing view of the stars.

A telescope and stars
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