Penicuik Estate, an Autumn Amble

Whatever happened to October? Its almost gone! Halloween will soon arrive, and evil faced pumpkin lanterns are on the window ledge. We are deep into Autumn now, a gorgeous time of year to be out on the trails through the trees. My trail shoes have not been on my feet even once this month, and my little camera has not seen the light of day. Sunday morning and its time to fix that, with an autumn amble around Penicuik Estate and beside the River North Esk.

I'm parked up on the road from Carlops to Penicuk in wind and rain. The autumn colours in the trees lift my spirits. I have a couple of hundred metres alongside a paved road before I leave to the left through trees and a small climb, avoiding crushing the toadstools, brings me to the Knight's Law Tower, apparently it was built as a dovecot.

Wind, rain, and autumn colours

ah ... loving the autumn colours in the trees here.

Small climb through the trees, skipping over the roots, ...

... and the toadstools ...

... to visit Knight's Law Tower

Delightful yellows, oranges and browns of autumn are all around me as I rejoin the roadside and run along the leaf carpeted verges toward the ruins of Penicuik House. This fine estate house was gutted by fire in 1899. The family converted the stables to a home and the old house was left to decay for long decades. These days restoration efforts are in progress. Behind the house the path leads underneath the Chinese Bridge down toward Low Pond, the solitary tree in the field by the pond catches my eye.

Rejoining the roadside more gorgeous autumn colours ...

... a bright little sapling on the verge ...

... and a delightful carpet to run over toward ...

... the ruins of Pencuik House gutted by fire in 1899 ...

... the stables were converted in to the family home.

The footpath leads underneath the Chinese Bridge behind the old house ...

... and down to Low Pond ....

... this solitary tree in the Low Pond Field catches my eye today.

I have a rough route plan this morning and the map is stowed in my backpack but there are so many footpaths I am mostly just following my nose. Sometimes I am on tarmac, sometimes gravel, sometimes earth, but mostly I am running on leaves, and admiring the colours. The footpaths wind up through the trees and soon I reach a ridge. The Pentland Hills form the skyline to my left. The rain stopped a while ago and I no longer need the waterproof jacket, so a brief wardrobe stop required and a quick check of the map. Looks like the next section takes me through an area which has been felled in recent times, the path starts well but soon the mud is deep and there are bits and pieces of trees across the path. These muddy twiggy paths bring me to the ruins of Ravensneuk Castle and across the fields the Ramsay Monument. Had a bit of "fun" crossing a double layered barbed wire fence here :)

The terrain so far has mostly been leaves ...

... and the attractions have mostly been trees.

The footpaths wind up through the trees ...

... to a ridge where the Pentland Hills form the skyline to my left.

The path ahead takes me through an area where there has been felling ...

... it soon becomes muddy and littered with tree parts.

The remains of Ravensneuk Castle .beside the path ..

... and the Ramsay Monument across the fields.

The paths descend through evergreens here without much relief from the muddy twiggy conditions underfoot. Soon I reach the edge of an area of unstable ground, there was a large landslide (warning, pdf) here in January 2007. Then some more descent through deciduous woodlands, with more glorious autumn colours and better ground under my feet, until I reach Penicuik South Kirk and a very short section of roadwork as I cross the bridge and turn to make tracks back along the north bank.

Descending through the evergreens ...

... with little respite from muddiness and twigginess ...

... to the edge of unstable ground around the landslide

Better ground and colours on continuing descent ...

... to Penicuik South Kirk ...

... and then to return along the north bank.

I can hear the water charging over a weir, part of the milling history of the area, and loving the views down river. Then there was more mud, but I am past caring much about mud at this time, my shoes are as wet inside as outside, there is mud in my shoes, there is already mud in my socks. The mud soon leads to well made paths alongside the river, passing an old stone bridge in disrepair. Here a turn to the right has me climbing above the river back toward Penicuik House, passing an old stone well on my right, and one final picture of the autumn colours to my left.

Water rushing over the weir ...

... loving the views down river.

More mud splish splash splosh!

Then better paths beside the river ...

... passing an old stone bridge in disrepair.

Then ascending back toward the estate house ...

... passing an old stone well on my right ...

... and one last picture of autumn to my left.

Nice little Sunday morning outing exploring somewhere new to me. Great to get my feet going on the earth again although perhaps a bit muddy and twiggy in places. Just under an hour and a half, just over 10km, and a little over 200m total ascent/descent.

Enjoy!

Memory Lane

I enjoyed a good long run last weekend which took in the western end of the Union Canal near Falkirk. This put an idea in my little old head, a jog down memory lane to the very beginning of running for me, at the eastern end of the canal in Edinburgh. This was my "school run". Junior and I would take the bus from home to his old school in Tollcross, and after the school bell had rung, I would try to run back.

So this is where it all started for me, in March 2011, right here at the Lochrin Basin, the eastern end of the canal, with pretty canal boats and colourful bunting today. There are several bridges over the next mile or so of the canal, I used to attempt to run from bridge to bridge. The towpath to the right is cobbled, I never much liked these first metres over the uneven hard stones. The first bridge ahead of me is the Leamington Lift Bridge which goes up to let the canal boats through entering and leaving the basin. I would stop here for a brief stretch and some breath training. The second bridge, a stone arch over the water, is only about 200 metres away, but when I started I always had to pause here for a breather and then walk a little. I guess I made the common beginner mistake of trying to go too fast, at a pace which I was not yet able to sustain. I did not know about C25K back then. It took me a little while to figure out for myself that what I had to do was run even slower.

The beginning, at the Lochrin Basin

The first bridge where I would pause to stretch and breath

The old stretching place

The third bridge, bright blue and red painted, is visible about another 400 metres ahead. I would run what I could and walk what I must in this section. The water here is peaceful and popular with swans and ducks.

The colourful third bridge ahead of me here ...

... the peaceful waters popular with swans ...

... and ducks.

The fourth bridge is about 700 metres away and out of sight as the contour canal bends to the left and then the right. This fourth section was always difficult for me in the early days and weeks and it was a relief when the parish church came into sight around the bend as I knew it would soon be done. In time I learned to step off the hard towpath here onto the softer ground along the edge of playing fields. The fourth bridge, another bright painted affair coming into sight through the trees as I left the playing fields to rejoin the canal, relief this section done and I would often walk the next 50 metres before I turned to leave the canal behind.

Fourth bridge out of sight as the canal bends to the left ...

... the parish church always a welcome sight in those days

Brief respite from the hard towpath ...

... and the fourth bridge is in sight, at last the fourth section is almost done.

I almost always enjoyed the next couple of hundred metres for two reasons. First, this part is a little down hill so easier going and welcome relief after the fourth section. Second, I am running on the grass through the trees in Harrison Park. This morning the carpet of autumn leaves is delighting me. Alas so soon I am done with canals and parks and the remainder of the run is a little boring along the roads. Crossing the railway bridge on Slateford Road I can make out a few of the Pentland Hills in the distance ... how little I knew about the fabulous adventure ahead of me in those beginning days and weeks.

Always lovely running down through the park on the grass ...

... with gorgeous autumn carpet today.

The remainder of the route is a little boring along the roads ...

... crossing the railway I can make out Pentland Hills in the distance.

I can no longer remember the date when I first tried this short three kilometre run. I can remember how surprised I was that it was so difficult, impossible for me. I can no longer remember the date when I first completed the run without stops or walks. I can remember how happy I was that this was now possible for me. It had taken me several weeks to get to this point. I can remember that over the next few weeks there were days when I could not complete this as a continuous run, but very slowly I grew stronger, I could do this run a little bit faster, I could run a little bit further. So I kept adding on a little more distance, exploring, enjoying. Since those early days I've done a lot of runs which have been very hard, for me anyway, but honestly I think the beginning was the hardest part.

Enjoy!