Arthur's Seat (251m / 823ft), and Holyrood Park, Edinburgh, Scotland
In late March 2003, there was a family gathering in Edinburgh, and we all wanted to take advantage of the clear sunny weather to climb Arthur's Seat.
We didn't make it easy for ourselves, starting out by walking across the city centre first, along the Royal Mile, and down to Holyrood where the Scottish Parliament was under construction. It wasn't possible to get any idea of what the building (already expected to exceedits budget) was going to look like - all we could see were wooden hoardings, construction huts and cranes.
Crossing over the Queen's Drive, we entered Holyrood Park and started climbing up past St Margaret's Loch. It was a steady climb, and Frances (who was 5 at the time) managed to climb just about all the way herself (with a couple of rests). The hiking route reaches a ridge where another trail joins it from Dunsapie Loch - this is the shortest route up to the top, with less climbing as the road is much higher on that side of the hill.
From there, the track turns to the right onto the rocky summit ridge, and you have to take a bit of care but it's safe enough provided you stick to the route.
We were fortunate to get to the top on a clear sunny day with very little wind. It had been chilly to start with, but it was pleasantly warm by the time we reached the top, and we joined a small crowd of others spread out across the various viewpoints overlooking the city. The Firth of Forth was clear in the distance.
It had taken us about 35 minutes after entering the park to reach the top, and we probably spent as long again enjoying the view.
Then we set off down the grassy slope towards Dunsapie Loch, and reached the road (Queen's Drive, which circles the hill). From there it was a pleasant and easy stroll back around the southern edge of the park, looking down towards Duddingston Loch.
We reached the roundabout to the south-west of the park, where a road runs down through another roundabout then along to the Commonwealth Pool. There was a cafe and toilets there.
After that, we returned through the Meadows to our hotel. It was an energetic but enjoyable half-day walk.
Three years later, I was back again for a meeting at The Tun, near the Scottish Parliament, and had half an hour to spare. Once again it was a sunny spring morning, and it was the first time I had really been able to look around the building and get some good photos of it.
Dynamic Earth also forms part of this collection of natural and man-made attractions, so that there's plenty for visitors to choose from.
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