River Dee, Galloway

The River Dee, in south-west Scotland, flows from its source in Loch Dee amongst the Galloway Hills, firstly to Clatteringshaws Loch, then into Loch Ken, where it joins the Water of Ken. From there, the Dee flows 15mi southwards to Kirkcudbright, and into Kirkcudbright Bay to reach the Solway. The distance is just over 38mi in total. Together with its tributaries, the Dee's total catchment area is over 400sqmi.The river is dammed at Tongland, two miles upriver from Kirkcudbright. This was constructed as part of the Galloway hydro-electric power scheme in the 1930s. Also at this site is Tongland Bridge, built in 1806 by Thomas Telford.The ruins of Threave Castle stand on an island on the lower part of the Dee.In Ptolemy's 2nd century work Geography it is recorded as Dēoúa. This form represents a development of Proto-Indo-European *deiueh2- 'a goddess', which occurs in many Celtic river-names.The Dee has also been known as the Black Water of Dee because of its dark colour in the stretch above Loch Ken.Loch Ken and the Dee Marshes were together designated a Ramsar site on August 21, 1992.