Walk 270 - Christmas Lunch 8 December 2022

 

Fifty four Strollers met at the Royal Scots Club in Abercromby Place to enjoy a chat and Christmas Lunch.

It was a bit confusing to some attendees as there was also another group of ex-SL people there for lunch at the same time. It sorted itself out as the Strollers headed down into the depths of the building and the Hepburn Suite while the others made their way up to the dining room. 

The room as usual was well decorated and the seating plan was on the entrance to the room as well as on the tables. A good idea for people who keep wandering around looking having forgotten where to go. It’s also a good job the organiser takes a copy of the food orders so that people can find out what they ordered. Everything with the meal appeared to go okay and the food and the service was good.

After the meal the attendees then sang Happy Birthday to Ronnie who had turned 80 the day before.

There was then time for a quiz and it was pure coincidence that the organiser’s table won!

All too soon it was time to go home and book for next year. 

Have a Good Christmas and a Happy New Year and look forward to seeing you on walks in 2023.

 

Walk 269 - 19 November

 Sadly, this walk was postponed due to inclement weather.

Walk 268 - Haymarket to Canonmills

 

Eighteen Strollers met at Haymarket Station to follow the old railway line from Roseburn to Canonmills and finish at the Scotland Street Tunnel. A nineteenth Stroller caught up with as we walked. The weather cleared and it was a fine day for the walk.

It could be described as a historical walk as we walked past sites of buildings and factories no longer there. Haymarket station used to be the terminus of the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway before the tunnel was built extending the line to the Waverley in 1846.

Starting off following the tram tracks and passing the site of the Haymarket Ice Rink which closed in 1978, we joined the footpath of the old railway line at Roseburn to follow it Trinity and then Canonmills. The line used to run from Princes Street to Leith with a split at Craigleith to Barnton.

Craigleith used to be a quarry but is now a shopping centre. From here we followed the path down past Crewe Toll where Ferranti used to have a huge presence but the site is a lot smaller and is now BAE/GEC. The site of the Village Hotel is where Livingston FC started life as Ferranti FC. For a while it was also the site of Telford College which is now at Granton. We then passed the site of the McTaggart Mickel builders’ depot which is now flats, followed by City Park which had been home to

Edinburgh City, Ferranti and Spartans before being sold for flats. We passed the Parsons Peebles site which was destroyed by fire and is now also flats.

At Trinity we then followed the Edinburgh, Leith and Newhaven Railway line through the Rodney Street Tunnel which had been opened as a footpath in 2009 to finish at the entrance to the Scotland Street Tunnel. This tunnel went all the way from here into Waverley Station. As the train had to go up a steep incline it was attached to a rope to help haul it up. It is now blocked but had been use for growing mushrooms and as car storage depot. 

Our thanks to Drew for the walk.

Walk 267 - Aberlady and Gosford House Estate

 Ten Strollers met at the entrance to Kilspindie Golf Course in Aberlady to head to the Gosford House Estate, with three more Strollers joining us at the car park there.

Aberlady used to be the ‘port’ for Haddington with the site of the golf clubhouse being the customs’ house. We walked past the ruins of Kilspindie Castle with the stones having been recycled to build the wall along the road. This area was the site of the largest Anglo-Saxon find of silver in Scotland along with Bronze Age relics as well. 

From here, we walked up ‘Coffin Lane’ and along to the Gosford Pleasure Gardens and Policies, which are in the grounds of Gosford House.

The estate belongs to the Earl of Wemyss and of March, two separate titles. The estate was laid out in the 18th and early 19th century with the house being designed by Robert Adam and the gardens by James Ramsay. We wandered past the Pyramid styled mausoleum and down to admire the house, before going round the ponds. The ponds were used for boating, fishing and curling. The ponds attract swans, ducks and heron which we saw on the day and also geese over the winter. We circled round the pounds past the curling and boathouse through the ‘policies’ or trees to look at the lily pond and the ice-house before making our way back to the car park and shop.

 Our thanks to Drew for arranging the walk and also for arranging a nice warm sunny day. A black mark though for not discovering that the food places in Aberlady didn’t open till later in the day contrary to their internet sites. 

Here’s to the next walk

Walk 266 - Bonnyrigg to Roslin - 18 August 2022

Twelve Strollers met at Bonnyrigg for the walk to Roslin partly on the old railway line and partly through Roslin Glen Country Park.

It was a dull day to begin with and not too hot for walking though the temperature was raised a bit when it was discovered that the public toilets had all been closed due to vandalism.

The railway line had been opened in 1872 as a branch line of the Edinburgh to Carlisle route in order to serve the paper mills between Dalkeith and Penicuik. There were lots of signs that it was used by horses so we had to tread carefully as we walked. Like others it was closed down in the 1960s but we saw the platforms of the old stations at Rosewell and Roslyn as we walked along.

Ignoring the noise from the dog kennels, we passed the back of St Matthew’s RC Church built in 1926 and stopped for a break at the entrance to Roslin Glen Park. At this point, we were close to Hawthornden House which dates from the 15th century but is now a retreat for artists and writers set up by the Heinz family in the 1980s. Amazing what beans can do for you! Passing Rosslyn Station, we turned down into the path that led down to the site of the gunpowder factory. Built in 1801, it closed after the 2nd World War. It used a water wheel to provide power to the site via a lade that had come from the weir which has now been dismantled as well. Only the bare ruins of the site remain.

From here we crossed over the road and into the site of the carpet factory, long gone as well, and crossed the river by the bridge and climbed up the steps to pass Rosslyn Castle, which is now holiday lets. Winding our way up the hill, we came to the old Rosslyn Inn which has had famous visitors from the Wordsworths, Walter Scott, Burns, Samuel Johnson and even to royalty. It sits next to Rosslyn Chapel made famous by the Da Vinci Code.

We finished in Roslin. The spelling is different as Rosslyn is the name of the baronetcy that was granted the land but the village was always spelt differently.

Our thanks to Colm for bring along the book with all the old pictures of the area, very interesting and thanks to Drew for organising the walk.

Hope to see you on the next walk.

  

Walk 265 - Dundas Castle Grounds

 A very select band of ten Strollers met at the Ferrymuir Shopping centre in South Queensferry for a walk round the grounds of Dundas Castle.

The walk started slightly later than billed as the coordinator got an extra tour of South Queensferry on the bus due to road closures. Other Strollers got caught out by the one way system down by the front and others just got lost! A good start to the walk.

Leaving the Tesco car park we made our way up to the entrance to Dundas Castle crossing over the noisy motorway.

Such a difference as soon as we went into the grounds, just the noise of birds and the occasional golf shot and the sun came out as well. One of our Strollers decided it was so nice that they stayed at the gate to the main house and sunbathed till we came round for them again.

The house and Castle are now used as a conference and wedding venue and the current castle really dates from the 1800s. It has been in the hands of the Stewart-Clarks from the late 1800s and a huge renovation of it was carried out by the current owner from the mid-1990s. Following the path with its views of Edinburgh and the Pentlands, we made our way down to the small loch with its own little boathouse which is now a small self catering cottage. We sat there and had lunch and a chat with one of the estate rangers. It was with some difficulty that we continued the walk as everyone had settled down in the sunshine watching the ducks and swans etc. on the loch.

Walking down through the woods we passed the fields with horses and the old dovecot before making our way back to meet up with our other, now suntanned, Stroller. Making our way back to Tesco for the buses and cars we had a lovely view of the new bridge.

Our thanks to Drew for organising the walk and the weather. 

The next walk will be Bonnyrigg to Penicuik.

Walk 264 Innerleithen to Walkerburn Circular

 

Fifteen Strollers met at Innerleithen to walk to Walkerburn using the tarmac path and then back on the other side of the Tweed through the fields and over the old railway bridge.

It was a nice day for a walk, dull but not too cold and it got a lot warmer on the way back. Innerleithen is home to the Robert Smail print works and St Ronan’s Well but is more famous now as a cycling centre with its access to Glentress and Cardrona as well as for walking and fishing.

Leaving the Hall Street car park, we made our way down Traquair Road to join the cycle route past the houses and then along the side of the caravan park. We then followed the path to Walkerburn. A nice quiet walk was only disturbed by the sound of the baby ducks on the river. Reaching Walkerburn, we stopped for some lunch, with some of the Strollers getting a room to themselves in the Caberston Cafe. I’m not sure whether that was good luck or whether they were sent there! The rest of the Strollers sat outside and had their sandwiches and drinks al fresco.

Walkerburn, like Innerleithen, is now more a cycling and walking centre. The mills have gone as has the railway. The mills used hydro power generated by pumping the water from the River Tweed up to a reservoir and then letting it back down to drive a turbine. They even built a funicular railway to haul the necessary building materials to the reservoir.

Setting off back down to the Tweed, we passed houses built for the mill workers that looked as if they were shoring each other up with joists, both stone and steel. We crossed the bridge and went into the fields to follow the path along the Tweed back to Innerleithen, taking great care to avoid the nice fertiliser left by the sheep, cows and horses we met on the way back. There was even a strange siting of a cyclist going paddling. He lasted about 2 seconds!

Some of the Strollers finished off the walk with a nice ice-cream from Caldwell’s in Innerleithen. 

Thanks to Drew for arranging the walk and hope for the same kind of weather next time.

Outing to Scone Palace & Gardens - Thursday 9 June 2022

 Forty three of us met on Waterloo Place for our outing to Scone Palace. We collected another two of our number at Inverkeithing then headed (or so we thought) to Dobbie's at Dunfermline for our coffee stop and to pick up our final member.

Unfortunately the driver hadn't been told that we were going to Dobbie's and drove on past the turn. Two of the committee kept him right and despite Dobbie's not having knowledge of our booking (they'd put it in their diary for 9 July!) we safely collected Bob and had our coffee.

After that, we headed to Scone and everything was fine, including the weather. We all went into the palace and were given a talk about two of the rooms. Everyone then went off on their separate ways. I'm told that four folk went into the maze and got a bit lost. They included our cheque book holder!

The meal at the Royal George was good and apparently the meringues were amazing. 

Walk 263 - Colinton Tunnel

On a breezy but bright day 23 Strollers met at the Water of Leith Centre at the foot of the Lanark Road to walk to the Colinton Tunnel via the canal and the Water of Leith.

Some Strollers took advantage of the meeting place for a coffee or tea and to use the facilities.

The Water of Leith Conservation Trust was formed in 1988 and organises over 240 clean ups of the river each year with an aim of protecting the river and its environs as well as running education sessions and  liaising with Edinburgh Council. 

A few of us declined the invitation to climb the 90 steps up to the aqueduct and followed the road up the pedestrian bridge crossing the Lanark Road where we met the others who had braved the heights of the aqueduct and followed the Union Canal for a short distance.

From here we followed the path along the route of what was once the Balerno Branch railway. It was opened to passenger and freight traffic in 1874, but was aimed mainly at serving the many mills that used to be on the river. At its peak 20 trains a day ran in both directions and passenger traffic grew with the expansion of the town and also day trippers at the weekend. Passenger traffic was stopped in 1943 and freight in in 1967. A proposal was made to make the old route a footpath and cycleway but it took till 1980 for it to happen. This involved reopening the Colinton Tunnel which had been bricked up and putting in lighting.

As we approached the tunnel, we were serenaded by a musician who seemed to be using the acoustics of the tunnel to practice his saxophone playing. The art work in the tunnel is based on Robert Louis Stevenson’s poem ‘From a Railway Carriage’. With the words of the poem on one side of the tunnel being linked by artwork to murals on the other wall depicting the lines of the poem. The artwork has been created by various groups from professional artists to school and community groups.

Go to the Project’s website at www.colintontunnel.org.uk and view some of the YouTube videos from the links on the Tunnel’s Home page, for example the STV News Broadcast from October 2020.

We then stopped in Spylaw Park for a nice relaxing lunch, where the house that used to be home to James Gillespie still stands, but is now flats. He built his fortune on snuff and tobacco and when he died he bequeathed his money to build a hospital and school for the poor.

After lunch we then headed back through the tunnel and then down to the path by the Water of Leith to follow it back to our starting place. 

Our thanks to Alistair B for arranging the walk and for such good weather to go with it. Hopefully June will be as nice.

 

Outing to the Tall Ship at the Riverside and Glasgow Cathedral - Monday 9 May 2022

There were 34 of us in our first group visit to Glasgow (plus one who met us there.). All of us very well prepared for the rainy day. Our driver was Isla who is brilliant at coping with the huge bus.
A quick decision was made to avoid Corstorphine as we headed to Dobbies at Livingston for the ‘Coffee Stop’. I heard positive comments about that and recommend the flat white.
The staff at The Tall Ship are friendly and helpful. Vera came in her boiler suit to welcome us, warn us about the wet ship and then we were free to view it as we wished. She went back to rubbing teak oil into an old box. There was lots of information about its past and ongoing restoration.
Our rainwear was needed for the walk from the coach to the Cathedral. It was my first time there and it is magnificent. Most of the stained glass windows were replaced in the 50s and 60s. They are beautiful and compliment the ancient building. My neck got sore with all the ‘looking up’. If it had been dry I’d have walked round the gardens. Some found a pub round the corner (recommended by the shop girls) so had coffee (so they told me!).
We arrived at the Leapark Hotel in Grangemouth in plenty time for drinks to be bought before our meal was served. Compliments all round for service and delicious, generous food.
A very good day.
Liz Staples

17 September 2021 Outing to the Jim Clark Museum and Melrose

Your Chairman has just realised that we hadn't let you know anything about the September outing.

Nineteen members and guests met at Waterloo place for the trip. Our first stop was at the Carfraemill Hotel for our mid morning hot drink.

From there, we headed to the improved Jim Clark Museum in Duns. Before we even entered the museum we were treated to seeing three rather smart sports cars sitting outside. Inside the museum we saw lots of exhibits relating to the wonderful Jim Clark including cars, trophies and videos. 

We then headed off to Melrose for some free time before our high tea in Galashiels.

Although  we were a small number, it was a very enjoyable trip.

 

Walk 262 - Innocent Railway

 Fourteen Strollers met at the Commonwealth Pool under clear blue skies to walk down the Innocent Railway path and the Braid and Brunstane Burn paths to Musselburgh. Our number went up to eighteen as we were joined by Ronnie and co as we crossed the road to go through the well-lit tunnel at the start of the walk where the Innocent Railway used to finish.

It’s now a popular cycle path as we discovered as we walked along the path towards Duddingston, passing Prestonfield golf course. The area used to be called Priestfield as there was a monastery there and the lie of the fairways reflects the use of the fields for drying flax. A certain Stroller even managed to collect an errant golf ball as a trophy.

Crossing over Duddingston Road and walking along the boundary of Duddingston Golf course, we reflected on the fact that at one time there had been 7 breweries sited here. They have all gone now to be replaced mostly by housing. Passing along Bingham we came to the Jewel, which is named after the quality of the seam of coal that was mined here. The Magdalene estate, named after the burn that flowed here, was once used as salt pans by the monks from Kelso Abbey and was the site of a cemetery of Bronze Age people.

From here we walked down the path at the side of the burn, now call the Brunstane Burn, which ran parallel with the road called Daiches Brae. This is thought to be the only road in the UK named after a Rabbi. Salis Daiches was an Edinburgh Rabbi from 1918 to 1945. His son David was famous as a diplomat to the US. He was involved in the setting up of UNESCO and writing books about various subjects including authors such as Stevenson, Burns and Milton as well as histories of Edinburgh and Glasgow and whisky.

Following the path we passed another golf course, Milton Glen, which was built by the owner of Archerfield golf courses. It is just a small course for the use of the residents of the houses that back on to it.

Finally we passed the shoe tree where people for some obscure reason tie odd shoes to the tree, and came to the end of the walk between Joppa and Musselburgh. 

Our Thanks to Drew for the walk and we look forward to the May walk.

Walk 260 - Sir Walter Scott etc.

 On a somewhat dreich day, 18 Strollers gathered at the Mound for an historic walk about Sir Walter Scott and other tit-bits of information. (Moira T caught up later which might have been earlier had the organiser been texting the correct Moira!)

The guides told us how the Nor Loch was created as an extra defence for the Castle before eventually being drained and turned into the gardens. The minister at St Cuthbert's was granted the only licence to fish in the loch.

As we walked through the West gardens we saw the Elephant of Remembrance and the rock which came as a present from Norway to remember the aid given to them in the 2nd World War. We stopped at the statue of the Polish army bear, Wojtek, and looked at the Scottish American Memorial which depicts workers marching to become soldiers in World War 1.

We also admired the Ross fountain, sculpted by artist Jean-Baptiste Jules Klagmann, and brought from the Great Exhibition of 1862 in London to Edinburgh in 1869 by Daniel Ross a local gun maker.

As we stood looking up at the castle we heard how Sir Walter Scott choreographed the visit of George IV in 1822 and found the Crown Jewels hidden in the castle.

We then stopped at St Johns church to visit the grave of Sir Walter’s mother and to see the grave of Malvina Wells which is the only recorded grave in Edinburgh of someone who was born enslaved. She came as a teenager from Grenada with the Macrae family, in whose plot she is buried, though she seems to have worked in various households until her death at the age of 84.

We then moved on to the corner at what some of still call Binns, but which is now the Johnnie Walker Centre, to watch the pipers on the restored clock march round playing Scotland the Brave. They also play Caller Herrin’ and for some reason they march at 7 and 37 minutes past the hour.

We also heard about the Sinclair fountain which used to stand here until 1926, paid for by Catherine Sinclair, for horses to get some water as they pulled the carts round Edinburgh. She was a writer and philanthropist and the “Eleanor Cross” at the end of North Charlotte Street and St Colme Street was built by public subscription to commemorate her.

On Castle Street we saw the house once owned by Sir Walter Scott. It was from here that he was evicted when he was declared bankrupt though he was allowed to keep the contents of his wine cellar as no ‘gentleman’ should be left without his wine! Now split into flats the basement which had been the kitchen area was sold for over £500,000. He kept writing in order to pay off all his debts.

We finished at the Scott Monument back in Princes Street, designed by George Meikle Kemp, started in 1840 and completed in 1846. The statue of Scott is in Carrara marble and took 6 years for the sculptor John Steell to sculpt from one piece of stone weighing 30 tons. The many smaller figures on the monument depict characters from his novels and poems.

Our Thanks to guides Karen and Helen for all the information on the walk and keeping us going in the rain.

Walk 259 Edinburgh's Literary Connections

On a dull day in Edinburgh 33 Strollers met at the Museum of Scotland in Chambers Street for a walk to St Giles guided by our Blue Badge Guides, Karen and Helen.

The basis of the walk was to celebrate Edinburgh’s link with writers and its status as the first Unesco City of Literature granted in 2004.

Chambers Street immediately gave a link to Chambers the publisher and past Lord Provost. From here we moved to behind the Bedlam Theatre to hear about the Bedlam Hospital and the poet Robert Ferguson who after a fall and head knock was sent to the hospital which was designated for the ‘mad’ people of Edinburgh. He died there at the age of 24 and his treatment there caused one of the doctors, Andrew Duncan, to petition parliament for money to start a hospital to properly care for these patients. The hospital he started is still going in Morningside. Burns was also a great fan of Ferguson and cited him as an influence in his poetry. 

It was then off to Greyfriars Kirkyard to remember the story of Greyfriars Bobby and the inspiration that JK Rowling got from the cemetery for her writing. We also remembered not to rub the statue for good luck!

From here we moved via the balcony on Victoria Street to James Court behind Gladstones Land to hear about David Hume and James Boswell who both lived in the square. We then went on to Lady Stairs Close to hear her story and to hear about the Writers Museum which is a museum in her old house.

From there we moved over to St Giles to remember other writers like Sir Walter Scott, Ian Rankin, Muriel Sparks, Eric Linklater and his son Magnus and Dorothy Dunnet.

We finished at the City Chambers where there is now a walk of fame where famous people linked with Edinburgh, like Alexander McCall Smith, set their handprints in concrete. Just like Hollywood! 

Our thanks to our Guides and we look forward to February and hope the weather stays as dry and mild as it did yesterday.