Wellbeing Wednesdays here at SWE!
In advance of Global Wellness Day this Saturday (14 June), we thought we’d share our ‘Wellbeing Wednesday’ initiative here at SWE. Every Wednesday, a beautifully crafted email drops into our inboxes with hints, tips and suggestions of ways in which we can all improve our wellbeing. A recent theme has been ‘Walking for your mental health’. With the days becoming lighter, it is the perfect opportunity to spend more time outside and reap the benefits, both physically and mentally, of getting out in the fresh air and enjoying a walk.
Our company directors, and visitor assistant, Heather, recently shared with the team some of their favourite walking routes in and around Edinburgh, and with such lovely content, we thought it was too good not to turn into a blog! We welcome many visitors to SWE that have not been to our city before and we thought, as a tourist, you often stay within the city centre, so this is not only a wellbeing blog, but a chance for visitors to our city to see what us locals might do in our free time, offering a chance to explore like a local.
Duddingston Village, Community Gardens and Meadowfield
First up, we have a recommended walking route by Susan, our CEO who enjoys this short, 30-minute walk which starts at the Sheep’s Heid Inn in Duddingston village.
“Cross the road from the Inn and just to your right you will see the entrance to the community garden. When you walk through the gate and up the incline, you will reach the greenhouses. You can walk right through and into the (young) orchard.
Head up the hill (stop to admire the views over Duddingston Golf Course and towards Craigmillar Castle) and about halfway up on the right there is a gate with a stile over it. Climb over and continue your way through woodland. This will bring you out in Meadowfield Park.
If you head downhill, you will join a road. As you continue down the road it will take you out around Holyrood High School and why not return to Duddingston Village for some refreshments at the Sheep’s Heid? For a longer walk, once in the orchard, just keep walking up instead of going over the gate and you’ll eventually find yourself on Arthur’s Seat not far from Dunsapie Loch.”
Water of Leith from Roseburn to Stockbridge
Next up, we have a recommended walking route by Jamie, our Finance Director.
“One of Edinburgh’s hidden natural assets, the Water of Leith flows for 24 miles: from its source in the Pentland hills through the middle of the city and towards its outflow into the Firth of Forth.
There are many nice routes along the Water of Leith. However, I enjoy joining the path at Roseburn and following the Water of Leith until Stockbridge. This route is approximately 2 miles long and should take you about 45 minutes to complete. There is of course always the option of cycling as well, if you prefer.
If you are really lucky, you might spot an otter or even a Kingfisher!
Once in Stockbridge, there is plenty of options to grab a hot beverage and spend some of the day out and about.”
Water of Leith, Restalrig Railway Path and Arthur's Seat
Angela, our Operations Director highlights three of her favourite locations for a walk:
“The Water of Leith is a great option for a serene walk in the city. I enjoy joining the path at Roseburn and walking back along to The Shore in Leith. There is plenty of wildlife to spot around the Water of Leith. You’ll always spot a dipper, heron or grey wagtail along the path.
In and around Leith, I enjoy the old Restalrig Rail pathway that takes you down into Leith links. The whole of the path is roughly 5km in length and it takes about 45 minutes to complete the full loop. If it is a clear day, I like to follow the path out to Portobello as well.
Another one of my favourite walks is around Arthur’s Seat with the option to cut down into Duddingston for a walk around Dr Neil’s Garden.”
Corstorphine Hill - Walks and History
Julie, our Marketing Director recommends a walk up Corstrophine Hill.
“Corstorphine Hill is a local nature reserve and Edinburgh’s largest urban woodland. The south-facing side of the hill looks across to the Pentlands and it is open and grassy. As you continue, you arrive at the zoo fence and can wander along the side, home to the squirrel monkeys, wallabies, kangaroos and zebras! At the top of the south side, you come to the “rest and be thankful” which had a staring location role in RL Stevenson’s book Kidnapped! Here the vista moves across to the east and over the city centre as far as North Berwick and the Bass Rock. Further on, you’ll move towards the woodland, much of which was planted with big specimen trees for the old surrounding estates and mansion houses.
On the top of the hill, you will find the Tower, which is a folly and is open for a nice climb in the summer. To the west of the tower the edge of the hill are open fields, once home to plenty of sheep, and are now being re-forested. Just above the fields you will find an open clearing of huge flat stones with mysterious cup-markings from the neolithic period. This is the side of the hill watched over by a few families of buzzards who love the open fields for hunting.
You will also find the Walled Garden on the pathway to the tower – it’s fascinating for us SWE people, as it belonged to Hillwood House, which was owned by the MacKinnon family, owners of Drambuie. They donated it to the council, and now it is managed by local volunteers, but there are still very unusual botanicals, which almost certainly make up part of the Drambuie secret recipe! Needless to say, there is lots of wildlife, from deer, rabbits, voles, foxes and badgers, to sparrowhawks, owls, buzzards, nuthatches, treecreepers and woodpeckers.
So, if you want a bit of history, archaeology, geology, ornithology, rewilding, nature bathing or beautiful views I highly recommend Corstorphine Hill.”
Roslin Glen and Gunpowder Mill
A little further out of the city, our Visitor Assistant Heather, was also inspired to share one of her favourite walks around the village of Roslin.
“Roslin Glen is a beautiful country park, with many happy memories as a child, roaming freely, whilst saturating myself with imaginative thoughts of the workings of The Gunpowder mill.
The long walk to the heart of the ruins takes you through large cut-outs in the side of the valley where buildings once stood, so that in the event of an explosion, the blast would go upwards, as to prevent a chain reaction along the valley and to other parts of the mill. The mill opened 1801/1804 and closed in 1954. The mill was a munitions mill, supplying 19th and 20th century wars. During the second world war, the whole mill was staffed by women as the men were fighting for their country.
Production came to an end not long after the war in 1954. The mill is situated on the North River Esk which has a weir and sluice gate so that water could be diverted to the water wheel, where now only the stanchions remain. Where the smell of cordite used to hang in the air, is now replaced by, wild garlic, snowdrops and bluebells. Most of the buildings are demolished for safety reasons, but what is left is easy to imagine how dangerous this place would have been.
If you climb up the path at the end of the valley, you will come to the old railway. Turn right and you will walk to the end of the line at Valleyfield Penicuik where one of the old Paper mills stood. Wildlife is premium with butterflies, otters, badgers, bats, kingfishers, dippers and many more. It’s a great place to visit.”