St Ninians Chapel

This dramatic ruined chapel was once part of a major pilgrimage route and is dedicated to St Ninian, a seminal saint in Scotland whose shrine lies a few miles inland at the Whithorn Piory. For centuries pilgrims have come to pay homage to St Ninian and ask for his help or forgiveness. The chapel here is a dramatic ruin, but it is easy to imagine the sense of achievement as pilgrims bashed ashore on to the rocky beach here, relieved to have survived the treacherous passage from Ireland and even as far as France and Spain. The earliest chapel on the site is thought to have dated back to early Christian times but the current incarnation has been dated back to the 11th century. Nearby lies a ‘Witness Cairn’, where more modern-day pilgrims are invited to add stones.