Galloway Hills races

Rough hill country in the south west of Scotland, and far less busy than the Highlands without being any easier. Forest track gives way to open moor, granite and tussock, and the going between the Merrick and the Rhinns of Kells is slow in a way that catches out people pacing off a road time.

The races here are long — from ninety kilometres to a coast-to-coast crossing of Scotland — and most expect you to navigate. That matters here more than in most places, because the hills are rounded and featureless in cloud, forestry blocks change between map editions, and there are long stretches with no path at all.

The ground holds water. Peat, bog and forest ride are the normal surfaces and dry conditions are the exception rather than the rule. Dalry and Portpatrick are the usual bases. This is remote enough that support is thin and self-sufficiency is genuinely part of the event rather than a phrase in the rules.

Galloway Hills trail running routes (1) with free GPX, if you want to run the ground before you race it.