Introduction The Clints of Dromore are a series of rocky outcrops near Gatehouse of Fleet. The crags are south facing and quite quick drying, but unfortunately a bird ban rules out climbing during the springtime. However they make a good autumn and winter venue, but summer can be a bit midgy. This page was compiled by John Biggar, a professional Mountaineering Instructor and member of the AMI, who lives locally. Contact me (details above) if you want to know more about climbing in Galloway. This page was compiled with care, but it is not guaranteed error free.
Access The access is nice and short for Galloway. To get to the Clints drive north up the B796 from Gatehouse of Fleet to the disused Gatehouse of Fleet station. You'll see the view above of the crag as you approach the end of the road. From here a short public road leads rightwards past the SNH Nature Reserve office and thru far too many gates to the big old railway viaduct where you can park. A 10-20 minute walk along the forest road then leads you back westwards to the crags.
There is a bird ban from Mid-February to about June at this crag. The climbing is on generally very good rock, and quick drying, but there are a few damp patches particularly on the slabs. Lichen is a problem on one or two routes. The longest routes, such as Spanish Inquisition and Central Buttress are up to 60m long by the time you find a belay.....
Descents Descent routes are obvious.
Guidebook A small selection of the better routes that I know personally are shown in the following diagrams, for full details of all the routes climbed to date here you will need the SMC "Lowland Outcrops" guidebook, 2004 edition.
Pictured below an adder, commonly seen around here.
The first good area you get to at the east end of the crags, at least if following the access above is the Black Streaker Slab.. It is partly hidden from below by a wee rise. There are three easy but quite bold routes up to about 30m long on the slab. Descend on the right.
A short way further west is the largest area, the Central Slabs. Routes here are up to 50m long. Descend to the left or using the central gully. Belays can be hard to find, 60m ropes are recommended.
Quite a long way further west is the small crag of the Black and White Walls, giving shorter more sustained routes. There are several harder routes as well, all described in the guidebook, but I haven't climbed them!
