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The path skirts around the edge of the wood to begin with, past mature Douglas firs, before it turns to go uphill. The effort to reach the viewpoint is rewarded with a fine vista stretching out across the Solway to the Lake District hills. Hestan Island, at the mouth of Balcary Bay, is visible in the foreground. The viewpoint often also provides close encounters with soaring buzzards at eye level or below. Listen too for the laughing call of the green woodpecker.
The name Doach is a late 18th century local name for a salmon trap or weir. It is derived from the Gaelic 'datschach', meaning vat or tub. Today Douglas fir is the dominant tree in much of the lower part of the wood. First discovered by the Scottish explorer Archibald Menzies, in North America in 1791, but named after another Scot David Douglas, who sent seeds to Britain in 1825. The magnificent specimens at Doach stand over 40 metres (130 feet) high.
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