Kelso and Melrose, Bordering on Brilliant

Happy New Year to everyone, here's hoping 2020 will be a good year for you all.

The tail end of last year we had a little trip down to the Scottish Borders for a few days. We stayed in Gibson Park Caravan Park in Melrose and also took a day trip to Kelso, here is our story:

Firstly our day trip to Kelso by bus from Melrose. It was a day of changeable weather with a few showers here and there. We got off the bus at East Bowmont Street and headed to a little cafe in Horsemarket for a morning coffee before heading out for a walk around the town centre:

Market Square, Kelso

Cross Keys Hotel, Kelso

Moira in Kelso

It's not a big place Kelso so it didn't take us too long to wander around the town centre. The highlight for me in the town centre was Rutherfords Micropub (next door to The Cross Keys); we didn't go in but it looked an interesting little establishment.
We then wound our way down towards the river, passing by Kelso Abbey:

Kelso Abbey

The Ruins of Kelso Abbey

Just past the Abbey there is a bridge over the River Tweed which provides some good views back towards the town:

River Tweed, downstream from Kelso Bridge

River Tweed, upstream from Kelso Bridge

Kelso from the Bridge over the Tweed

After enjoying the views of Kelso and Floors Castle (in the distance) we came back off the bridge and headed along Mayfield Riverside Walk:

Kelso Bridge from Riverside Walk

Mayfield Riverside Walk

Nice House by the River Tweed

It was a pleasant enough walk but I expected to see a bit more wildlife along the side of the river. There was only a Heron and a couple of Mallards, but I did manage to capture a little Robin singing in a nearby bush:

Robin on Mayfield Riverside Walk

When we arrived back at the town centre we stopped for as bite of lunch in The Cream Chimneys cafe, which was nice'n'tasty. After lunch we went for another little walk exploring the North side of the town before heading back to Melrose on the bus:

North Parish Church, Kelso

The following day we got up bright and early and after breakfast we met up with my friend David for a cup of tea/coffee in the Abbey Mill Cafe in Melrose. It was a beautiful morning, so after a good chinwag we headed out for a walk along the river towards Tweedbank.

The Cauld at Melrose

David by The Tweed in Melrose

The Tweed, upstream of the Cauld in Melrose

The cauld (or weir) was originally built back in the 17th century to divert water from the river to the Abbey Mill via a lade. The water powered the mill wheel which ground corn to make bread for the monks at Melrose Abbey.
Just upstream from the cauld we enjoyed watching some Goosanders battling against the flow of the river in order to search for food. There was a pair of female Goosanders (commonly known as "Redheads")..........

..........and a solitary male Goosander, resplendent in the morning sun:

We carried on upstream and uphill, enjoying the elevated views:

Looking down on the Tweed at Melrose

We then return back down to a low level path, where the autumnal views were just as good:

Alongside the Tweed at Melrose

Here we passed a Heron, perched on the edge of the opposite bank.......... it was either concentrating very hard or sleeping:

We carried on along the riverside path until we reached Lowood Bridge, where we headed off the path and up towards Tweedbank Railway Station.

Lowood Bridge, near Tweedbank

At Tweedbank David caught a train home to Galashiels and we headed to Herge's Restaurant for a bite of lunch.
Herge wasn't in but we did meet his friend Tintin (who I thought was a bit boring, I'd even go as far as saying he was wooden):

Tintin (no Snowy I'm afraid)

Apologies if this means nothing to you! Just check out some Tintin cartoons.
After lunch we walked back to Melrose and relaxed for the rest of the day.
The following morning we decided to explore some of the areas of Melrose that we hadn't been to before, starting with a walk to the village of Darnick on the outskirts of Melrose. It was a chilly morning but the sun was out, making the Autumn colours even more spectacular:

Autumn Colours in Melrose

The Path to Melrose Parish Church

The walk to Darnick was very pleasant and the village itself quite pretty, I didn't take many photos though, apart from this one of an old tractor at the entrance to Darnick Farm:

Entrance to Darnick Farm

Passing through Darnick Village took us back on to the main road in to Melrose, so we headed back that way.

Entering Melrose

I was impressed with the mini-castle Melrose sign; lets you know the place is posh even before you enter.
As we headed in to Melrose we got some nice views of the Eildon Hills:

Eildon Hills

There are three peaks to the Eildon Hills (but you can only see two from this direction), hence why the Roman Fort at nearby Newstead was called Trimontium.
As we reached the junction at Gibson Park we were treated to more Autumnal views:

Looking towards Melrose High Street

Lovely Trees

More Autumnal Views

Path Alongside Melrose RFC Ground

After a spot of lunch in the motorhome we then decided to go for a walk along part of St Cuthbert's Way which starts from Melrose and goes all the way to Lindisfarne in Northumberland. The walk takes several days so starting off mid-afternoon there was no way we were even going to complete the first leg of the walk (lucky if we could complete the small toe of the first leg).
The aim was to get as far as we could up to the saddle between the Mid and North peaks of the Eildon Hills. We headed through the town, along Dingleton Road then joined the start of St Cuthbert's Way. Our first obstacle was a slippy wooden bridge over the Malthouse Burn, up a muddy track and then we reached a few steps:

Moira on Steps up to Eildon Saddle

After battling our way up the steps, which seemed to go on forever, we reached a muddy slope full of slippy boulders. It was so slippy that we had to stand aside whilst a young women being dragged downhill by a Labrador pub went skidding past (I kid you not!). At the top of the slippy slope it was less steep so we stopped for a breather and to take in the views:

Southern end of Melrose

Melrose and The Abbey

Towards Newstead

The path then started to get steeper again and Moira chose not to go any further, i on the other hand decided I would head up a little further to see what it was like further along the path.

The Path up the Eildons

Ready to brave the Ascent

I got a little higher up (not much) before deciding that I was not going to make it up to the saddle and back down before it would be starting to get dark. I also thought it would be unfair to leave poor Moira halfway up the hill. So I took a couple of photos (and a video of some crows) before heading back downhill:

View from (halfway up) the Eildon Hills

Sun starting to set on Eildon Hills

Heading back down from Eildons

I met up with Moira and we braved the slippy, muddy slope back downhill, without the assistance of a sled-dog. We then headed down the slippy steps to the bottom, where I tried my best to get a video of what I thought was a Red Squirrel up in the tree canopy:

It turned out to be a Grey Squirrel, so I didn't even get that right!
Our bid to conquer the Eildons and capture some exotic wildlife had failed miserably........... never mind we did walk a very short part of St Cuthbert's Way, got some nice views and had a bit of a laugh!............ so not a complete disaster.

Here's to some new adventures in 2020.

Cheers

Teddy Edwards

Montrose and Edzell

We decided to treat ourselves last month and have a few days away in a hotel rather than taking the motorhome. We chose to go to Montrose because Moira hadn't been there and it had been about twenty years since I had visited that area.
We booked in to the Links Hotel as it had good reviews and was only 5 minutes from the town centre. We were quite pleased with the room we were given as it was reasonably spacious, had a nice bathroom and unlike many hotels these days it had plenty of clothes storage (a wardrobe and three sets of drawers no less!)

Our Room at The Links

It even had double-aspect windows, unfortunately the view out these windows was not quite so good. Out on window was the fire escape at the rear of the building and out the other was a stone wall!

Room with a view (of a stone wall)

It was great that we had more space than in the motorhome, but we are use to better views from the motorhome windows. It was still a nice room though and the rest of the hotel was good as well.
First thing we did was go for a walk down the high street to scout out cafes, shops, restaurants, etc.

Looking down Montrose High Street

James Graham, First Marquis of Montrose (apparently)

The high street was okay but there seemed to be a distinct lack of eateries. A few cafes and take-aways but nothing much in the way of restaurants for an evening meal. Luckily the Links Hotel did very good evening meals so we ate there for the few days we stayed.
In the morning we had a hearty breakfast in the hotel before we headed out to Montrose Basin. This is the estuary of the River South Esk, which has a narrow outlet to the sea, hence forming a large 'basin' of tidal water, which provides an ideal habitat for wading birds, waterfowl, seals and geese.
The Scottish Wildlife Trust have a brilliant visitor centre here and this was our first stop. We picked up a map of the Montrose Basin Reserve and a few tips from the SWT Guide before heading out to the Widgeon hide on the Northwest corner of the basin.
It was a pleasant walk to the hide, despite the fact that the weather was a bit grey, but at least it wasn't raining:

Track leading to Widgeon Hide

Plenty of Elderberries on way to Widgeon Hide

The hide itself is perched on stilts giving you a good view across the basin to the town of Montrose:

View from Widgeon Hide

The tide was pretty far out, so it was very unlikely that we would see any Widgeon, or any type of duck at all. We did have quite good views of a Grey Heron fishing in a little pond of trapped water, just in front of the hide:

Grey Heron at Pond

The following video probably demonstrates the Heron's fishing skills better, it also shows the moment it flew past us to get to the pond:

There were also a few waders about, including this Curlew preening itself on the mudflats..........

........... and this Oystercatcher catching a worm (not an oyster):

Most of the other waders and waterfowl were either on the water (or on the water's edge) which was miles away!............ it was certainly too far away for my little camcorder, as this panoramic view demonstrates:

We spent the best part of an hour at the Widgeon Hide before we made our way back along the track towards the car. When we were in the hide we kept hearing the calls of Pink Footed Geese, but never really seen any until we got out of the hide and a small skene flew overhead:

Bearing in mind that at this time of year over 40,000 Pink-footed Geese roost overnight in and around Montrose Basin, it was a bit surprising this was the first bunch we saw that day. We did however see plenty of other birds on our way back to the car, including this pair of Yellowhammers on the electricity cables:

There was also a Buzzard perched on an electricity pole, before it swooped down to the ground:

Didn't look like it caught anything?
A little further along the track the same Buzzard flew up on to a tree............ then flew off again........... I think it was a bit restless!

Just before we reached the car this Robin popped up to wish us a safe journey back to Montrose:

We drove over to Montrose Beach in the hope of finding somewhere to have a bite of lunch, unfortunately it was 'out of season' and every place was closed. We did however enjoy a pleasant (if cold) stroll along the beachfront:

Moira on Montrose Beachfront

Montrose Beach

Lighthouse and Beach at Montrose

The beach was lovely......... and empty............. but I am sure it is a lot busier in the Summer.
There was also interesting features on the beachfront itself, such as these dinosaurs carved into the slabs:

Dinosaur Slabs

Another point of interest was a bronze statue of a minesweeper crew member, created by local sculptor William Lamb:

Minesweeper Crewman

Minesweeper Crewman close up

It was a very intriguing sculpture, although his forward leaning stance did remind me of something.............

Peg Boy

That's it!............. the pose struck by my grandson Graeme, when his Nana stuck pegs on his sleeves (don't ask why?)
Enough of this nonsense, we were getting hungry by now so headed back to our hotel for a bite of lunch.
After a bite of lunch and a bit of a rest we took a walk down to Montrose Railway Station. We had no intention of catching a train anywhere, but we had been reliably informed that the bridge over the track in the station was one of the best places to view birds at Montrose Basin!

Montrose Basin from Railway Station Bridge

Montrose Basin towards Tayock

That advice did in fact turn out to be very reliable, especially if you wanted close-up views of waders. Here are just some examples, starting with a  Redshank chase:

There were several species of waders to be seen feeding in front of us, including this Curlew which was relatively close..............

......... and this Oystercatcher which seemed to be in a bit of a hurry:

A solitary Turnstone made an appearance, sprinting past some feeding Redshank (I have provide a slo-mo version so you can make it out):

As the tide was coming in the feeding waders were starting to get a bit more frantic, in fact a few of the Redshank decide enough was enough and they flew off:

As the tide rolled in the sandbank in the middle of the basin began to disappear under the water; forcing the Pink-footed Geese on the sandbank to leave for their night-time roost on the far shore of the basin:

Over the next half hour or so we watched hundreds of Pink-footed Geese leave the sandbank and head for the mudflats near Tayock. This was only a few of the 40,000 geese that would eventually roost on the shores of the basin, flying in from all over the Montrose area, but it wasn't getting pretty cold and we were getting hungry so we headed back to the hotel.

The next morning we were up bright and early(ish) and ate another hearty breakfast in the hotel. We then headed out in the car to the little village of Edzell, about a half hour drive from Montrose. The main reason for our trip here was that Moira has always wanted to visit Edzell as it is the place her parents first met, during WW2 when they were both stationed at the nearby RAF airbase.
First thing you notice when you approach Edzell is that you have to pass under an archway:

Approaching the Village of Edzell

Edzell Archway

We drove under the archway and found a place to park on the far side of the village. We then had a mosey back down the High Street, checking out anything of interest:

Edzell High Street

Inglis Memorial Hall

I did notice that the good people of Edzell seemed to like old Landrovers as several were parked in the High Street:

Old Landrover

More Old Landrovers

Landrover Heaven

I know that it is historically a farming community, which might explain the Landrovers............... and the vintage tractors in a couple of the gardens as well.
We headed in to a cafe/gift shop for a snack and a browse; I think it was called Edzell Tweed Warehouse (or Edzell Tweedie to the locals). The food was good but we didn't buy any Tweed, just a couple of postcards.
We walked down to the archway at the start of the village to see if we could find out a bit more about its origins:

Moira at Dalhousie Arch, Edzell

Inscription on Dalhousie Arch

Apparently the arch was erected in 1889 to commemorate the death of the 13th Earl of Dalhousie, a certain John William Maule Ramsay (Lord Ramsay to his friends).  The arch is also lit up at night, courtesy of the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board; as this plaque explains:

Lighting for the Dalhousie Arch

This must have been pre-1990 when the NSHEB became Scottish Hydro-Electric plc. It subsequently became Scottish & Southern Electric plc. in 1998 when it merged with Southern Electric.
We had exhausted places to see in Edzell so we went on a mission to find out what (if anything) remained of the airbase where Moira's parents met.
Here's the history bit:

• The site was originally established as a RAF airbase during WW1, and was subsequently disbanded in 1919
• During the 1930's it was a civilian airbase before returning to RAF service in 1940 (this is when Moira's parents were stationed here)
• After WW2 it ceased as an RAF base and from 1950 to 1958 it was used as a motor racing track. The legendary Jim Clark won the final race to be held here.
• In 1960 it reopened as an airbase, but this time for the US Navy. It served as an integral part of the US Navy's Global High Frequency Direction Finding Network (giant listening device) during the Cold War.
• It closed as an airbase in 1997 and for the last twenty years it has been an industrial estate

So there was obviously less to see than in its heyday, most of the land has returned to agriculture and many of the original buildings have gone. At the site of the industrial estate (which was pretty well fortified for an industrial estate) you could still see some of the large hangars from its airbase days:

Remnants of Edzell Airbase

Large Hangars at Edzell Airbase

As we couldn't actually get on to the former airbase we headed back to the hotel, with the intention of visiting Montrose Air Station Heritage Centre in the afternoon. Unfortunately it was closed so we still didn't see any airbase memorabilia.

We instead took a drive to Tayock on the shores of Montrose Basin in the hope of seeing some air-based wildlife.

Mudflats at Tayock, Montrose Basin

This is where the Pink-footed Geese arrived to roost in the evening, however it was only mid-afternoon and the tide was pretty far out, so we were not going to witness geese flying over our heads in huge numbers.

There were still plenty of geese, waders and wildfowl out on the mudflats and sandbanks though, as you can see in this video:

This was our last full day at Montrose so we had a relaxing afternoon at the hotel, a slap-up evening meal, a couple of drinks then off to bed.

The next morning after breakfast we headed for home, stopping on the way at the SWT Reserve for a last look at Montrose Basin:

Montrose Basin from SWT Reserve Hide

Montrose Basin in Autumn Colours

We popped in to the SWT Visitor Centre building to see if there was anything worth seeing and we were not disappointed. There were plenty of birds on their feeders, including some Tree Sparrows (a less common cousin of the House Sparrow) feeding on spilt seed:

We were also lucky enough to see a Kingfisher perch on a branch near one of the tidal ponds............

.........and even luckier to see it come closer and land on the dipping-pond platform just outside the visitor centre:

So it was worth our while checking out the visitor centre before we went home.

Although not everything went to plan during our visit to Montrose it wouldn't stop me from going back there. Maybe next time we would take the motorhome and pitch-up in the caravan park at Tayock, that way we would have the geese and other birds right on our doorstep.

Take Care

Teddyedward