On a hot and balmy sunny day (yes this was
the November walk!) forty eight Strollers caused pedestrian chaos at Haymarket
Station to meet up for the walk to Davidsons Mains. It must have been the
mention of a pub at the end of the walk or the Greggs next door to it which
appealed or just to say that they had been on a walk so that they could come to
the Strollers Lunch!
Following the tram lines, and trying hard not
to get anyone run over, we set off to join up with the railway footpath which
ran parallel to the railway line. It was originally constructed during 1853 by
the Caledonian Railway however it lay disused for more than a century and the
trains ran along what is now the Western Approach Road to the Caley Station.
The line was finally commissioned during September 1964 by British Rail who
then closed the Caley Station.
Joining the footpath at Roseburn we crossed
the Water of Leith and wandered down past Ravelston and Craigleith whilst the
Strollers tried to work out where they were and also to catch up with the front
markers who were taking the word ‘strolling’ to a new level.
Strangely at Craigleith, no one seemed keen
to leave and go for a bit of retail therapy at the shopping centre. It’s based
in the old quarry which supplied a lot of the stone for the New Town. We passed
under the bridges at Drylaw with some very impressive graffiti artwork on them
which may have been done as part of the Graffiti festival held in Leith in
September 2018.
Pretty soon, quicker than walk estimate, Davidson's Mains came into view. It was possibly named after
William Davidson, a wealthy merchant, who bought the
Muirhouse area, in 1776. Prior to the 19th century it was
known as Muttonhole. Wouldn’t it have been good if they had kept that name?
Stopping at the top of Silverknowes to point
out the closest pubs and cafes, it was amazing how quickly 48 Strollers can
disappear at the mere mention of food and drink.
Our thanks to our leader Drew, for arranging
and getting the weather to go with it.
