Dalmellington tourist information

The mining town of Dalmellington is set in the beautiful Doon Valley, a rural and an especially scenic part of south west Scotland ideal for walking and cycling.

Dalmellington itself is interesting and unusual, founded on the weaving and coal industries and set over a hillside. Its history is explained in the Doon Valley Museum, located in a row of converted weavers cottages dating from 1744.

Those exploring the Doon Valley should also take in Loch Doon, a freshwater lake over 5 miles long leading south to the craggy and undulating peaks of the remote hills known as the Rhinns of Kells. The 13th century Loch Doon (or Balloch) Castle was once set on an island in the lake but dismantled and rebuilt nearby in the 1930s to save it being submerged by a hydroelectric scheme.