Scotland
Kirriereoch Hill
787M
2581FT
About Kirriereoch Hill
Part of the formidable Range of the Awful Hand, this bulky Galloway summit offers a sense of true isolation. A notable drystane wall crosses the plateau, marking the highest point in South Ayrshire. From the top, you gain an exceptional perspective of Merrick’s eastern crags across the deep gap of the Howe of Kirkcudbright.
Key Statistics
Rank
5th Highest in Region
Parent Range
Southern Uplands
Prominence
?
150.2m
Nearest Town
Kirriemore
Geology
Kirriereoch Hill is built from the Kirkcolm Formation. It consists of wacke, a durable and muddy type of sandstone that forms this rugged landscape.
Find It
OS Grid Reference
NX420869
Latitude
55.1517°N
Longitude
4.4796°W
Did You Know?
- •The name likely derives from the Gaelic Coire Riabhach, meaning the 'speckled or brindled corrie', referring to the rugged, textured slopes that drop away toward the Kirriereoch Burn to the east.
- •Despite its impressive height and stature within the Southern Uplands, the hill missed out on regaining its Corbett status by just over two metres following a professional GPS survey in 2015.
- •The summit plateau is marked by an old drystane boundary wall which historically divided Ayrshire and Kirkcudbrightshire; it remains the highest ground in the county of South Ayrshire.
- •Positioned centrally in the 'Range of the Awful Hand', the summit provides a unique profile of its neighbours, Shalloch on Minnoch and Merrick, which are often obscured by more common approach routes from the west.
- •While the 'Awful Hand' name refers to the map profile of the five ridges, the rough, pathless terrain between Kirriereoch and its neighbours ensures that your feet will find the name equally descriptive by the end of the day.