Rough Firth is an inlet on the northern coast of 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 ...

in the

Stewartry Stewartry was a local government district from 1975 until 1996 within the Dumfries and Galloway region in south-west Scotland. Under the name Stewartry of Kirkcudbright the area of the former district is still used as a lieutenancy area. Dumf ...

area 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 ...

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 ...

. The

firth Firth is a word in the English and Scots languages used to denote various coastal waters in the United Kingdom, predominantly within Scotland. In the Northern Isles, it more usually refers to a smaller inlet. It is linguistically cognate to ''fj ...

lies between Almorness Point and Castlehill Point, and contains Rough Island. The village of

Kippford Kippford (; otherwise Scaur)
Gazetteer for Scotland is a small village along the firth Firth is a word in the English and Scots languages used to denote various coastal waters in the United Kingdom, predominantly within Scotland. In the Northern Isles, it more usually refers to a smaller inlet. It is linguistically cognate to ''fj ...

where the

Urr Water Urr Water or River Urr ('' arc. River Orr'') is a river in which flows through the counties of Dumfriesshire and Kirkcudbrightshire in southwest Scotland. Course Entirely within Dumfries and Galloway, the Urr Water originates at Loch Urr and flo ...

reaches the sea; the only other coastal settlement of any size is Rockcliffe. The area is designated as the East Stewartry Coast National Scenic Area, one of the forty

national scenic areas National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

(NSAs) in Scotland. 44 ha on the eastern side of the firth is owned by the

National Trust for Scotland The National Trust for Scotland for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, commonly known as the National Trust for Scotland ( gd, Urras Nàiseanta na h-Alba), is a Scottish conservation organisation. It is the largest membership organ ...

, forming the Rockcliffe property, which covers a stretch of coastline and several small islands (including Rough Island).

Description

The area includes several different landscapes, as identified by

Scottish Natural Heritage NatureScot ( gd, NàdarAlba), which was formerly known as Scottish Natural Heritage, is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government responsible for the country's natural heritage, especially its natural, genetic and ...

when undertaking a review of the "special qualities" of the area in 2010: There is a small 6th-century trading post known as the Mote of Mark, which stands on a rocky outcrop, and is owned by the National Trust for Scotland. The site was excavated in 1913, and two drystone huts were found, along with over 100 flints, which may be

prehistoric Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...

in origin. Additionally, a small piece of

Samian ware Terra sigillata is a term with at least three distinct meanings: as a description of medieval medicinal earth; in archaeology, as a general term for some of the fine red Ancient Roman pottery with glossy surface slips made in specific areas of t ...

and a piece of a

mortarium A mortarium (pl. "mortaria") was one of a class of Ancient Roman pottery kitchen vessels. They are "hemispherical or conical bowls, commonly with heavy flanges", and with coarse sand or grit embedded into the internal surface. They were used for p ...

were uncovered, along with fragments of clay moulds from the early Christian period, and pieces of 9th-century glass likely to have come from the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

region. Another historic site within the East Stewartry Coast is

Orchardton Tower Orchardton Tower is a ruined tower house in Kirkcudbrightshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is located south of Dalbeattie, and south of Palnackie, in Buittle parish. It is remarkable as the only cylindrical tower house in Scotland. ...

, a ruined

tower house A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation. Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountainous or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strateg ...

built in the fifteenth century. It is located 6 km south of

Dalbeattie Dalbeattie (, sco, Dawbeattie, gd, Dail Bheithe meaning 'haugh of the birch' or ''Dail'' ''bhàite'' 'drowned (''i.e.'' liable to flood) haugh') is a town in the historical county of Kirkcudbrightshire in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. Dalbea ...

, and 2 km south of

Palnackie Palnackie is a village in the parish of Buittle in the historical county of Kirkcudbrightshire in Dumfries and Galloway Dumfries and Galloway ( sco, Dumfries an Gallowa; gd, Dùn Phrìs is Gall-Ghaidhealaibh) is one of 32 unitary council ...

. It is remarkable as the only cylindrical tower house in Scotland, being built around 200 years after such towers had gone out of fashion. Orchardton Tower is in the care of

Historic Environment Scotland Historic Environment Scotland (HES) ( gd, Àrainneachd Eachdraidheil Alba) is an executive non-departmental public body responsible for investigating, caring for and promoting Scotland's historic environment. HES was formed in 2015 from the mer ...

as a

Scheduled Ancient Monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

East Stewartry Coast National Scenic Area

National scenic areas are defined so as to identify areas of exceptional scenery and to ensure its protection from inappropriate development. The areas protected by the designation are considered to represent the type of scenic beauty "popularly associated with Scotland and for which it is renowned". The East Stewartry Coast was first defined as an NSA in 1981, and was redesignated under new legislation in 2010. The designated area covers 9620 ha in total, of which 8447 ha is on land, with a further 1173 ha being marine (i.e. below low tide level). As well as the inlet of Rough Firth and its immediate surroundings the designated area extend eastwards as far as the Mersehead Sands near the small settlement of Caulkerbush. The northern edge of the NSA borders

Forest. National scenic areas are primarily designated due to their scenic qualities, however the area covered may well have other special qualities, for example related to culture, history, archaeology, geology or wildlife. Areas with such qualities may be protected via other national and international designations that overlap with the NSA designation. The East Stewarty Coast NSA overlaps partially with the Solway Firth

Special Area of Conservation A Special Area of Conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...

and

Special Protection Area A Special Protection Area (SPA) is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union (EU) have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and cert ...

References

External links

Rough Firth entry in the "Gazetteer for Scotland"

East Stewartry Coast NSA Management Strategy
{{NSAs in Scotland, state=collapsed National scenic areas of Scotland Protected areas of Dumfries and Galloway Landforms of Dumfries and Galloway Firths of Scotland Solway Firth