The Red Moss Hotel And Truck Stop, Biggar

I was pleasantly surprised to find this place still trading. When the new section of the M74 motorway south of Lesmahagow opened about 10 years ago, The Red Moss found itself marooned beside the old A74 road, which was subsequently single tracked with one carriageway converted to a cycle lane/footpath. Like The Bates Motel in Psycho, it lost most of its passing trade, with only the occasional cyclists, walkers (like me) and drivers who weren’t qualified to use the motorway using the old road. However, it has successfully reinvented itself as The Red Moss Hotel And Truck Stop, catering for long distance lorry drivers, with overnight accommodation, parking space, food, drink and showers. (I should say at this point that the staff are friendly and none of them looks like a serial killer.) The walls of the bar are decorated with photographs of juggernauts, which seems strange as I’d have thought the truckers would want to forget about their jobs while they’re in the pub. The bar also contains a “massage chair,” which is probably helpful after a long day’s driving. A beer garden at the front looks on to the now almost deserted A-road, while the eponymous red moss stretches away into the distance at the back, with no other buildings in sight.