The River Esk ( gd, Easg), also known as the Border Esk, is a river that rises in the Scottish region of

Dumfries and Galloway Dumfries and Galloway ( sco, Dumfries an Gallowa; gd, Dùn Phrìs is Gall-Ghaidhealaibh) is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland and is located in the western Southern Uplands. It covers the counties of Scotland, historic counties of ...

before crossing the border to the English county of

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...

and flowing into the

Solway Firth The Solway Firth ( gd, Tràchd Romhra) is a firth that forms part of the border between England and Scotland, between Cumbria (including the Solway Plain) and Dumfries and Galloway. It stretches from St Bees Head, just south of Whitehaven in ...

Course

The river rises in the hills to the east of

Moffat Moffat ( gd, Mofad) is a burgh and parish in Dumfriesshire, now part of the Dumfries and Galloway local authority area in Scotland. It lies on the River Annan, with a population of around 2,500. It was a centre of the wool trade and a spa town. ...

and its two main tributaries, the Black Esk and the White Esk, merge at the southern end of

Castle O'er Forest Castle O'er Forest is a forest south of Eskdalemuir, Dumfries and Galloway, in southern Scotland. It is bisected by the River Esk. Eskdalemuir Forest Eskdalemuir Forest is a forest north of Eskdalemuir, Dumfries and Galloway, in southern Scotlan ...

. It flows south east through Eskdale past

Langholm Langholm , also known colloquially as the "Muckle Toon", is a burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, southern Scotland. Langholm lies between four hills in the valley of the River Esk in the Southern Uplands. Location and geography Langholm sits nort ...

. Near Langholm the river is crossed by the

Duchess Bridge The Duchess Bridge is a cast iron footbridge over the River Esk in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It was built for Charles Montagu-Scott, 4th Duke of Buccleuch by William Keir Junior of Millholm to replace a dilapidated wooden bridge in th ...

which is said to be the oldest iron bridge in Scotland. The Esk merges with

Liddel Water Liddel Water is a river running through southern Scotland and northern England, for much of its course forming the border between the two countries, and was formerly one of the boundaries of the Debatable Lands. Liddel Water's source is beneath ...

(which defines the border between

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

and

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

). Before passing Longtown the river enters England and merges with the

River Lyne The River Lyne is a river of Cumbria in England. The river is formed near the hamlet of Stapleton, five miles west of Bewcastle, by the confluence of the Black Lyne (moving from the north) and the White Lyne (from northeast). Both branches ha ...

and enters the Solway Firth near the mouth of the River Eden. It was formerly one of the boundaries of the

Debatable Lands The Debatable Lands, also known as debatable ground, batable ground or threip lands,. lay between Scotland and England. It was formerly in question as to which it belonged when they were distinct kingdoms. The name either signifies litigious or ...

as marked by the

Scots' Dike The Scots' Dike or dyke is a three and a half mile / 5.25 km long linear earthwork, constructed by the English and the Scots in the year 1552Mack, James Logan (1926). ''The Border Line'', p.94. Oliver & Boyd to mark the division of the Deb ...

Tributaries

The various tributaries of the Esk are described proceeding downstream. The White Esk arises as the Glendearg and Tomleuchar burns merge then flow south through

Eskdalemuir Forest Eskdalemuir Forest is a forest north of Eskdalemuir, Dumfries and Galloway, in southern Scotland. It was created as a private enterprise by the Economic Forestry Group during the 1970s. Eskdalemuir Forest is adjoined by Craik Forest to the north-ea ...

capturing the waters of the Garwald Water at Garwaldwaterfoot then continuing by the village of

Eskdalemuir Eskdalemuir is a civil parish and small village in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, with a population of 265.

into Castle O'er Forest. It is followed by the

B709 B roads are numbered routes in Great Britain of lesser importance than A roads. See the article Great Britain road numbering scheme for the rationale behind the numbers allocated. (some data from openstreetmap.org) Zone 7 (2 & 3 digits) Zon ...

road for much of its course. The headwaters of the Black Esk feed into the Black Esk Reservoir, from the foot of whose dam, the Black Esk flows south to Sandyford where it is crossed by the B723 road. It then turns sharply east then southeast passing Castle O'er on its way to meet with the White Esk to form the River Esk. The Meggat Water (not to be confused with

Megget Water Megget Water is a river in the parish of Yarrow, Selkirkshire in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. The Water rises at Broad Law (2,760 ft), passes through Megget Reservoir and empties into St Mary's Loch. Places in the vicinity inclu ...

) is a left bank tributary of the Esk which rises at the southern margin of

Craik Forest Craik Forest is a forest near Hawick in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, and managed by the Forestry Commission. It is adjoined to the south-west by Eskdalemuir Forest. See also *Craik, Scottish Borders *Ettrick Forest *Wauchope Forest *List ...

and flows south, being joined by the Stennies Water before its confluence with the Esk. The Ewes Water is a significant left bank tributary of the Esk which enters the latter at Langholm. Its headwaters, the Eweslees, Mosspaul and Carewoodrig Burns merge and flow southwards as the Ewes Water for several miles, being joined by numerous further burns, the most significant of which is the Meikledale Burn. The valley of the Ewes Water is followed by the

A7 road A7, A.7, A 7, A07 or A-7 may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * A7, the A dominant seventh chord used in many rock songs, see dominant seventh chord * A (musical note) * ''A7'' (mixtape), by SCH, 2015 * Avenged Sevenfold, a hard rock/met ...

from Carlisle to Edinburgh and by an electricity transmission line. Wauchope Water is a right bank tributary of the Esk which joins immediately downstream from the Ewes Water confluence. It arises as the Logan Water and Bigholms Burn meet southwest of Langholm. The Tarras Water is a left bank tributary of the Esk which joins it south of Langholm. The

is a major tributary which enters on the left bank between Canonbie and Longtown. It forms the boundary between Scotland and England for a while as does its tributary, the

Kershope Burn Kershope Burn is a burn running in its entirety along the border between England and Scotland. The river rises, as Clark's Sike, in a marshy area in Kielder Forest Northumberland known as Hobb's Flow, before becoming Kershope Burn after runnin ...

. The

enters on the left bank at Lynefoot just above the normal tidal limit of the estuarial section of the Esk. The

River Sark The River Sark or Sark Water is a river best known for forming part of the western border between Scotland and England. Most of its short length, however, is entirely in Scotland. It flows into the estuary of the River Esk just to the south of G ...

and the

Kirtle Water The Kirtle Water is a river in Dumfries and Galloway in southern Scotland. It rises on the southern slopes of Haggy Hill where its headwaters are impounded to form Winterhope Reservoir. Below the dam it flows in a generally southerly direction pas ...

enter the tidal estuary of the Esk to the east and west of Gretna respectively. See main articles on each of these and some of their tributaries.

References

External links

Photo of the Esk entering Solway Firth - Getty Images
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