Getting to this location is an adventure in itself however any effort is well rewarded with the castle ruins making an amazing foreground to any Aurora photo and dark skies above. Note this location is poorly signposted so plan your trip thoroughly and arrive during daylight.
Weather forecast
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17/09/25
15° 4% -
17/09/25
13° 4% -
18/09/25
12° 3% -
18/09/25
11° 6%
Weather forecast for Thornhill (dumfries & Galloway) (2.1 miles away) updated 16/09/25 at 20:02.
Local light pollution
Morton Castle and Loch is estimated to have light pollution levels similar to a rural location based on the latest data from the VIIRS satellite.
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Urban
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Suburban
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Semi-rural
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Rural
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Dark site
The above demonstrates the estimated effect of light pollution - graphics created using Stellarium.
Best time to visit
The below chart shows when the skies will be at their darkest at this location and therefore the best time to visit. Moonlight is shown in light yellow and the Sun's twilight in light blue. Midnight on the date shown is shown as a white line with sunset to the left and sunrise the next morning to the right. A black background with stars shows the best times for stargazing. See our dark sky calendar for more details.
Wed 17th Sep
Thu 18th Sep
Fri 19th Sep
Sat 20th Sep
Sun 21st Sep
Mon 22nd Sep
Tue 23rd Sep
Find more dates
If you are planning to visit this location check our dark sky calendar to find out when is best!
Calendar