Orientated on a north-south axis, Loch Ryan is Scotland's most southerly sea loch and faces out towards Ailsa Craig and is bounded to the West by the Rhins of Galloway (good for sea-watching), and to the East , Ayrshire including Glen App SSSI (excellent for hen harrier).

In the 2nd world war the loch was used as a flying boat base and was used by Churchill to visit the United States. There is plenty of evidence of wartime activity, although today the loch is used by ferry services operating from Stranraer (black redstart here 2016) to Northern Ireland.

Good at all times of the year, but particularly in Winter which brings large numbers of waders and wildfowl aswell as divers and grebes including good numbers of slavonian grebe, twite and merlin.Gull numbers can be impressive including regular iceland gull, pomarine Skua, wildfowl such as scaup, long-tailed duck and eider.

A good place to start is 'The Wig'. In summer there are breeding waders such as ringed plover pictured,curlew and oystercatcher along with breeding wildfowl red-breasted merganser and shelduck.

Inset picture: Birdersmarket

We highly recommend the publications below to compliment your visit to this Region.

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