LEJOG
Distance walked – 28km (17.5miles)
Total Distance – 1418.1km (886.3miles)
While I’m worth my room on this Earth
I will be with you
While the Chief
Puts sunshine on Leith
The Proclaimers – Sunshine on Leith
Today’s walk took us across the Pentland Hills and into Edinburgh. Arriving in Edinburgh was a fantastic physical and psychological milestone for us as we journey on our LEJOG. And what a way to achieve it, with another fabulous day of walking. The weather continued to be amazing, and the Pentland Hills provided a spectacular setting for our triumphant procession into Edinburgh (well at least in our eyes, no one else seemed to notice).
Roman road to Carlops
It was already a warm beautiful day when we set off at 07:30 from The Gordon Arms in West Linton. We climbed up a steep lane out of the village, before joining an old Roman road that runs through farmland on the edge of the Pentland Hills Regional Park. My brother Marcus, who lives in Edinburgh, joined us again today, and was in charge of route finding as he knows this area quite well. It was a relief to have a day off from map reading!
Carlins Lowp
We soon passed through the small village of Carlops. The name derives from the Scots Carlins Lowp which means Witches Leap as there are two 20m high exposed rock faces opposite each other at the South end of the village. Local folklore maintains that witches would jump from one to another for entertainment in the evenings. (Well, it beats sniffing glue on the rec ground).
We passed the Witches Leap, no witches evident on this quiet Monday morning, before continuing on another quiet lane to the hamlet of Nine Mile Burn.
On the Monk’s Road
The Pentland Hills were now visible, rising dramatically to our left. The highest peaks of the range were visible in the distance as vague silhouettes in the morning haze.
The Pentlands are a range of hills that run from the edge of Edinburgh southwest for about 30 kilometres. They rise to a maximum height of 579m with a total of 11 peaks over 500 metres. Most of the range is part of the Pentland Hills Regional Park and consists of upland heather moorland, a few small pockets of woodland, and several reservoirs. The whole area is crisscrossed with a bewildering array of walking paths, so we were glad that Marcus was with us and had planned a path for the day. Our plan was to cross via a series of some of the highest peaks, before a final ascent to a great lookout over Edinburgh. We would then descend to enter Edinburgh via a mainly off-road route.
Offering at the Font Stone
We stated our ascent from Nine Mile Burn via an ancient path called the Monk’s Road, which as the name suggests was used by monks travelling from the nearby Cistercian Monastery at Newhall across the Pentlands to Queensferry outside of Edinburgh.
Along the way, we stopped at the Font Stone, a medieval stone set beside the path. Tradition has it that travellers place an offering into the hollowed-out stone to be granted safety on their trip. We scrambled around to find some spare change, (there wasn’t an EFTPOS option), and Louisa made our offering. Hopefully 50p will get us to John o’Groats.
Heading up
We crossed Monks Rig before the steep climb up to the top of West Kip (551m) the first in a series of three linked peaks.
West Kip simmit
From the top, the path could be easily seen winding up to East Kip and then on to Scald Law, the highest point in the Pentlands. There were great views all around, the hills a random mixture of patches of light green, dark green and some purple heather.
The path onwards
We could see in the far distance an edge of one of the reservoirs that we will walk around later. We were passed by some hardy fell-runners, tackling the peaks at pace. There were actually very few other people around, possibly because it was a Monday. I imagine these paths get very busy on the weekend.
The path behind
We descended to a saddle before ascending the second peak of East Kip (534m) and then continuing down and up again to the top of Scald Law (579m).
Scald Law
We stopped for lunch on the edge of Scald Law, with a panorama of the Pentlands laid around us. It was a perfect spot and was accompanied by perfect weather. There was little wind, and the temperature was in the low 20s Celsius.
After lunch we descended from the peaks to walk around the edges of Loganlee and then Glen Course Reservoirs. This was all easy walking on paths and roads. We started to see a lot more people now, out enjoying the great weather.
The final section was the long ascent of Allermuir Hill, which required a large deviation around the military firing ranges at Castlelaw. The scenery was marvellous, however, and with a final push we arrived at the summit.
Sunshine on Leith
And there laid before us was Edinburgh, with the distinctive prominence of Arthur’s Seat, and the sea lying beyond. It glistened in the afternoon sun.
We made it to Edinburgh
It was a very emotional moment for us as we realised that we have just walked all the way from Cornwall to here. It was also the first time we have seen the sea since we left the South West Coastal Path 33 days ago. We took some time to relax and enjoy the view and the sense of achievement.
The way into Edinburgh
Now there was just the small matter of walking to our AirBnB accommodation in Edinburgh which suddenly seemed to still be a long way away. Luckily Marcus knew the way and guided us down the hill and through the outskirts of Edinburgh via the Braidburn Valley Park. Alas there were no cheering crowds, the people of Edinburgh deciding to ignore us as they sunbathed in the park instead. We arrived in the suburb of Morningside, where the hustle and bustle of city life was a little disorientating after so long in the country. We farewelled Marcus (we will see him later), thanking him for his company and guidance, before settling down in our apartment.
This was our 23rd day walking since our last rest day, and during this time we have averaged just over 27km/day. This has left us sorely in need of a break, and we are definitely looking forward to our two rest days in Edinburgh. We have no plans, but maybe we can go for a walk . . . . . .
