Hogmanay Hike

We planned a circular walk but the weather wasn't in it.  In fact we nearly got blown off the top of this hill before beating a retreat!

(Yes there is a person on the foothill - but it was the hill in the background, Turnhouse Hill,  that we climbed)



Fyrish You a Merry Christmas

Easter Ross-Shire, Scotland



Fyrish Monument with Cromarty Firth below





Landward view

 The monument was built in 1782 by order of local landowner and soldier, Hector Munro. It is said to be  based on the gates of the Indian city of Negapatam which he helped subdue.  A work generating scheme, the idea that they rolled the stones back down the hill to double the time it took to build seems to be a fanciful construction!

Snow Sunday 4/12/11

Big excitement on Sunday morning as we woke to lying snow. It adds that extra dimension to those familar scenes.

Polwarth Church and Union Canal



Harrison Park - First Snow

Corstorphine Hill from Craiglockhart Junction

We've not really had any more but it's been very cold and icey.  Last year the snow arrived in late November and stayed with us throughout December.  I'm hoping it's going to be warmer this year!

Ello Ello....What have we here?

Across Edinburgh the old police boxes have been transformed. Most are now coffee shops, but this one is a statement in it's own right

It backs on to part of the towns old defences - The Flodden Wall

If it wasn't for the pylons in between

 I got a great shot  lined up today - only problem was this ruddy great pylon...

...and no matter how I tried to frame it...

... the pylon wouldn't budge!

It's normaly the houses in between!

So this afternoon, whn we took the dog for a walk,  I began to get the feel I was being follwed around.

Here's a shot without any

but just out of shot:

(There's a skein of  geese above that pylon in the shot above)

Ah well - perhaps we can learn to live with them.

Hare Hill and West Kip

On Saturday afternoon we climbed Hare Hill:


Signpost at heart of Pentlands



Go West

West Kip

Darkness descends rather rapidly and it was black by 5pm



Edinburgh lights through trees

 

Calton Hill and the East End

Modern functionality

Traditional tenemant



Edinburgh's Folly and Nelson Monument



New and Old




Princes Street - an aspiring street

 

A Park for All Seasons

Bordered by the Union Canal to the south, and tenement housing in all other directions Harrison Park is a gem of Victorian planning. The bowling green and tennis courts have fallen into disuse but the football pitchesand children's playgrounds are much visited. The council does a great job of stocking the formal beds and planting droves of daffodils and crocuses. Together with the cherry blossom these transform the park in spring. Not so clever is their policy (throughout Edinburgh parks) of replacing "proper" railings (as seen on the left of the path) and hedges with the low level, and no doubt low maintainance, "monorail" (as seen to the right). These have always struck me as being trip wires for those unfamiliar with the territory. All in all the park is a wonderful asset worth every penny it costs to preserve.