DAY 63: Penicuik to Broxburn: Evening Report

Today: 19.3 miles
Total so far: 914.5 miles
Percentage completed: 54.8%

(Click map to enlarge)

After the lunchtime libations, we left Balerno with a new spring in our stride, and soon made Kirknewton for an ice cream and to mingle with the Mums picking up their children from school. What they made of a man in tights I am not sure, but they were all politeness but I made a note to wear the hotel trousers on tomorrow's walk along the canal.

The Almondell Country Park was ravishing, so we ravished the two fine bottles of beer that David had been keeping for just such an emergency as this; he on his Aussie tipple and me on Adnams. It was perfick!

We walked above the river alongside a man made gushy little stream that fed the Union Canal and when we met up with it we crossed the aqueduct - a little beauty. Having crossed the thing, the path disappeared, so we field bashed for a few hundred yards until we hit a bridge to cross over the canal to the towpath. The rest of the walk was plain sailing along the canal.

Canal walks are usually quiet contemplative affairs, but this one is under Edinburgh Airport's flight path so we checked all the rivets on the underside of the planes as they staggered the last few miles down to the airstrip.

The weather today has been glorious once more, but we noted that we could not see Edinburgh; under it's own huge haar; so they were having their own little climate all to themselves as the rest of Great Britain was having a scorcher.

We hit the Wild West of Broxburn and were collected by Katie. I was looked after royally by David & Katie at the Manse. Thank you!

As the whole of Scotland goes to the polls tomorrow, I shall be strolling along the Union Canal, ready for whatever the great voting public has to throw in my direction.