Start Time: 11:00a.m.
Distance: 4 miles
Duration: 3.0 hours
Nineteen Strollers met at the Commonwealth Pool to enjoy a walk
round Holyrood Park. The weather was a bit grey but thankfully there was no rain
until we were back at the Pool at the end of the walk.
In fact it was quite mild on the
walk with no wind, almost balmy for November.
The
walk was like a figure of eight starting off along the Radical Road, back up
Hunters Bog, round to Dunsapie Loch and then via the Innocent Railway back to
the start.
At
the start of the Radical Road it looked like a Dutch get together with lots of
people in bright orange suits and hard hats, but they were studying the
geological make up of the Salisbury
Crags.
Following in the footsteps of the geologist James Hutton, and
Harold Raeburn the mountaineer we made our way down the Radical Road to St
Katherines Well. The road is called that as it was built by Radicals from the
Dumfries area after a suggestion from Sir Walter Scott. From there we headed up
through Hunters Bog, site of early settlement and an iron age fort, but also the
hunting ground of the kings and queens, hence its name. Also used by the Romans
and Bonnie Prince Charlie's army, it was also partly flooded by Mary Queen of
Scots to hold a birthday party for a lady in waiting and recreating a sea battle
off Leith. It is now home to rare plants like adders tongue
fern.
We
then set off round the road in the direction of Dunsapie Loch. Much of the
current layout of the park was created by Prince Albert when he arranged for
drainage work to be done and the roads to be put in so people could access the
park easier. Dunsapie Loch as well as St Margarets Loch were created at that
time. At the base of Arthurs Seat you can still see the outlines of the terraces
used for farming by the early settlers. From here we then went down over 200
steps to Duddingston Village, not as sprightly as the joggers who passed us, and
past the the famous Sheep Heid Inn. Scene of many a skittles
match.
From
there we made our way down to the Innocent Railway, site of the
Edinburgh and Dalkeith Railway, opened in July
1831, originally as a horse-drawn tramway built to haul agricultural produce and
coal from the mines of Lothian up to the Edinburgh at St Leonards, it was
Edinburgh's first railway line. At 517 metres, the Innocent Railway tunnel
under Holyrood Park is an impressive one, particularly when you consider it was
the first railway tunnel in the UK. Before 1845, trains were winched by cable
drawn by horse and stationary steam engines up the St Leonard's Inclined
Plane.
Avoiding the tunnel some of us went back to the Commonwealth Pool for some
well deserved refreshment while others went off to the Engine Shed.
Dates for the 2015 walks
will be sent out soon.
