Rambling Russells

Solway Firth Partnership have had a project called Coastwise running. The aim is to find more about the names given to local coastal features. Red Kirk near Gretna is shown on maps but there are no visible remains of the Kirk. However, the location sparked an interest and a group of archaeologists from St. Andrews University became involved looking at the effects of coastal erosion and features uncovered. A guided walk along this part of the shoreline was organised by Nic Coombey of Coastwise and so we booked our places. We were transported by minibus as close to the shore as possible and along with 20 others set off for the shore. The first feature was an unusual set of wooden posts running at an angle to the waterline. These have only been visible since high tides during winter washed away layers of sand and mud.  Experts showed us how the river channels had changed over many years and this only helped to make speculation about these posts even more difficult. ...

Sunday Heading for Leith, we drove through Newcastleton and then Jedburgh, spotting the 12th century Abbey from a distance … another place to visit in the future? Continuing through Kelso and Berwick we headed north along the coast to Eyemouth. Another place we had never been to, so we headed for the harbour and a wander about. The harbour appeared to have a range of vessels - from fishing vessels to pleasure craft of all sizes and types. It also had a flock of 20-30 eider ducks on the day we were there. Love the sounds they make! A bit like a very saucy Frankie Howard!  This seal was, we think, a regular around the harbour. He just sat in the water looking at the people watching him. Not many fish scraps about on a Sunday! As we walked along the promenade, overlooking the harbour, we came to the bronze memorial unveiled in Oct 2016. The work, created by Jill Watson, commemorates the disaster following the  storm in Oct 1881 when 189 local fishermen...

Our plan was to travel by train to Dundee using the Border railway - so Thursday saw us set off by car to Hawick. Why go via Hawick? Well the friends we were going with live there! We took the scenic route via Talla Reservoir and St Mary's Loch on a lovely sunny day. The hills looked amazing - the sun and shade  made all the variations in terrain really stand out. Talla looked pretty too with the sun just behind the hills. But … just to prove we were only in February - some water was still icy from the overnight frost. Friday Not such nice weather this morning as we really began our latest adventure. We headed for the stop to catch the bus to Galashiels before crossing the road to the train station, where just a few minutes wait soon passed. The train arrived on time and our journey to Edinburgh began. After a refreshment stop we boarded our next train to Dundee. Some sunshine allowed us good views of some of the scenery. Crossing the Tay Ra...