Hestan Island
Hestan Island is a small coastal island in the Solway Firth, southwest Scotland.
Hestan Island lies at the mouth of Auchencairn Bay in the region of Dumfries and Galloway in the former county of Kirkcudbrightshire. A lighthouse was built on the island by Alan Stevenson in 1850.
At certain conditions of the tide the island is accessible on foot as there is a natural causeway of shingle and mussels to the northern tip of Heston.
At the southern tip of the island is the notably-named "Daft Ann's Steps", a series of pinnacles where, legends say, a girl of lesser intelligence attempted to lay stepping stones ahead of her to reach the Balcary Point and drowned.[1]
There are ruins of a manor house built for Edward Balliol on the island.
In the 18th century the island was used as a centre of smuggling activity, with goods being stored in the caves where there was reputed to have been shelves cut into the rock. Samuel Rutherford Crockett made great play with this in his novel The Raiders.[1]
The island is a popular destination for sea kayakers.[2]
References
- ^ a b "A History of Auchencairn and District". Achencairn.org.uk. Retrieved 2007-04-29.
- ^ "Daft Anne's Steps, Hestan Island, the Solway Firth". Seakayakphoto.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2007-04-29.
External links
54°49′56″N 3°48′33″W / 54.8321°N 3.8092°W
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