Crowdieknowe Hill

The walk up Crowdieknowe Hill from Lockerbie takes you onto proper moorland that feels like the real Scotland - brown heather, wind, and views that stretch for miles. It's not high or dramatic, but it's the sort of place where you'll actually see something at the top rather than just cloud. The summit sits at around 360 metres and on a clear day you get the Solway Firth and the Lake District hills across the border.

Walkers will find it genuinely worth the effort. It's maybe an hour and a half up if you're taking your time, and the path is well-trodden enough. Not the sort of grunt that leaves you wrecked, but enough to feel like you've earned the view. Families with kids who can handle a decent hill will get on with it fine - no scrambling, just steady climbing.

The main thing here is the isolation. You won't find crowds, and that's increasingly rare. From Cressfield Caravan Park, which sits about six miles away, it makes an excellent morning out if you're basing yourself there for a week. The moorland around Lockerbie doesn't get the attention that hills further west do, but that's partly the appeal.

Go when the weather's settled - this isn't a hill that rewards visits in driving rain. Early autumn, when the heather's still decent and the midges have dropped off, is probably your sweet spot. Free to access, naturally. Bring water and something warm in the pack.