26km (16 miles) SW of Dumfries; 158km (98 miles) SW of Edinburgh; 79km (49 miles) SE of Ayr

An old cattle- and sheep-market town, Castle Douglas, at the northern tip of Carlingwark Loch, is near such attractions as Threave Castle, Cardoness Castle, Kirkcudbright, and Sweetheart Abbey, and just southeast of the Galloway Forest Park. On one of the islets in the loch is an ancient lake dwelling known as a crannog.