The Solway Firth narrows at Bowness-on-Solway, a small village of whitewashed cottages on a low headland, and this is where Hadrian's Wall ended, or rather began, at its western end.
The Wall here was probably not of stone but of turf and timber, because there was no good quarry nearby, and it ended in the tidal marshes with a fort at Bowness, called Maia, to guard the crossing. At low tide, the sands can be waded, which is why the Romans placed milefortlets and watchtowers along the shore, and why this end of the frontier was always sensitive. The Wall Path, the long distance trail, ends here, and walkers often stop for a drink at the pub in the village. The dismantled railway mentioned in your label is the old Solway Junction Railway, which from 1869 carried iron ore across the firth on a viaduct nearly two kilometres long, joining Bowness to the Scottish side. It was damaged by ice floes and by traffic decline, closed in 1921 and was taken down in the 1930s, though the old embankment can still be traced across the fields.
The Solway coast is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, a landscape of salt marsh, mudflats and sand dunes, and in winter huge flocks of barnacle geese gather here, which is a wonderful sight at dawn and dusk. The tides are fast and dangerous and can cover the sands more quickly than a person can run, so stay on the marked paths and do not wander onto the flats.
The road along the shore, narrow and flat, is a pleasant ride when the weather is good, with long straights and gentle bends, though in winter it can flood at high tides and strong winds can make riding unpleasant. Cattle often graze unfenced beside the road, so keep your speed down. There is little in the way of services nearby, so fill the tank in Carlisle or in Annan, which has nearly nine thousand people and a few supermarkets and cafes. Eastriggs and Gretna have smaller shops. Spring and autumn are best for birds.