Stillness under the stars – my unexpected adventure in Scotland’s dark sky town
By the end of 2025, I’d completed 10 months of flexible work and travel, following a stretch of steady living in London.
Between the bustle of Bangkok; the beaches of Cambodia; the quiet jungle of Bali; and the historic streets of Europe – I’d absorbed a lot.
But while they were all meaningful experiences in their own way, I craved more purpose for my next adventure.
That’s when I spotted an email from the volunteering platform, Workaway: “Hi Georgina. We saw your profile, and wondered if you would like to help out at our English language school in Scotland this December?”
Rarely in need of a reason to visit the home of the brave, a month later, I found myself in Moffat, a small town in Dumfries & Galloway.
Arriving in Moffat: Europe’s first dark sky town
Whether it’s my genes calling me home; my inner introvert sighing with relief; or long-dead dreams of witches and wizards stirring once again, something about travelling from England to Scotland felt instantly calming on that mild December evening.
The undulating hills that appear like a fortress when you cross the border are – in my mind – the perfect paradox. Comforting and haunting; cosy and spooky: inviting, and at the same time, a little threatening – especially if you’re half English.
Arriving in Moffat around 4pm, I was instantly engulfed by the velvety Scottish night. It’s especially dark here, and there’s a reason for that.
Moffat is one of Europe’s first ‘dark sky’ towns. That means the community was so keen to see the stars, that they asked the council to lower the street lamps to reduce light pollution.
They also built an observatory – which is very impressive, considering some towns can’t even get their potholes filled!
Our home for the period was Moffat Independent Hostel. Pulling up to the grey stone house, with its twinkling lights, oak panels and deep red carpets felt gorgeously festive, and immediately inspired my inner child.
Bonding by breaking bread
The organisation – English Al Fresco – hosted groups of seven to eight people at the hostel for four-day stretches, during which they got to see different parts of the local area.
On arrival, I was introduced to another volunteer, Lora, whom I shared a very comfortable room with for two weeks.
We were there to help ensure the guests had a good time and could practise their English in a safe space. Not a hard job at all really!
We spent a wonderful two weeks with our guests, cooing at Highland cows, clambering around castle ruins; playing pool by the fire and drinking drams at the pub.
Every morning and evening, we ate breakfast and dinner together in the drawing room. Think eggs; coffee; cheese and hot cross buns – a feast that Hogwarts would be proud of.
Breaking bread every day became a special ritual that we all looked forward to.
Sunshine spectacular at Grey Mare’s Tail
We also had unusually mild weather, which meant we could explore the stunning scenery around us.
One morning, we took a drive to a nearby spot – Grey Mare’s Tail – for a hike.
It was drizzly, but our host promised that once we got halfway up, we’d find a surprise at the top.
Up we went on a steep incline. Around me, gasps and curses in German, Italian and Spanish mingled with the lowland fog.
When we eventually reached the top, the trail flattened out. At the same time, the clouds dispersed and the heath was plunged into bright sunshine.
The rest of the walk was a bucolic mix of browns, greens and caramels – like a rugged, tartan carpet, sitting beneath a milky blue sky.
Before arriving at the loch for lunch, we passed a guy in shorts who’d been camping at the top. In December! If you need a reminder of how resilient the Scots are, that is certainly it.
Compèring a major international event
On another evening, we headed down to the local pizza place, Kayantics, where we found a group of lads of similar age circled around the outdoor oven.
Beers were exchanged, and soon they were inviting us to an event taking place in Moffat that week; the international yodelling Olympics, no less.
“People from Sweden are attending.”
It sounded very significant indeed, and a little later, Dutch courage took hold and I found myself agreeing to compère the competition.
Turns out, it wasn’t as serious as it sounded, but the whole town did attend for a big Christmas yod-along – some adorned with lederhosen.
Being welcomed into the community like that was completely unexpected, and made for one of the most memorable evenings of the trip.
Bringing my year to a calm close
I loved walking the silent, dark streets of this kind lowland town in the late afternoon, and looking up at the glimmering sky.
It wasn’t stargazing season, but when I later returned in April to look after the hostel as caretaker, volunteers at the observatory kindly guided me through a three-hour tour of the sky, where I was able to see Jupiter and its moons up close through the telescope.
After each day’s adventure, we took comfort in returning to the sparkling windows, and impenetrable stone walls of Moffat Independent Hostel for a hot chocolate (or something stronger) and a good night’s sleep.
Volunteering with English Al Fresco was exactly the kind of meaningful slow travel experience I wanted, and I came away from it feeling especially grateful, fulfilled and excited to explore more of home.
But before then – a little rest. The year of 2025 had been a wonderful whirlwind, but my mind needed time to reflect, digest and reset, before I took off again.
In fact, I haven’t don’t much travelling at all since then, focusing instead on building my petsitting side hustle. But as I revisit those weeks in this blog, my feet are starting to tingle.
