Turf Blog 19-10-24

Brave adventurers might cross entire continents to discover the source of a river such as the Nile or Amazon, usually funded by some really posh knob, geographical society or the like, hire hundreds of native porters to carry their Earl Grey tea, fruit scones and assorted Englishness and write their way onto the history books. I, however, have none of that. All I have is my trusty bicycle, a bottle of water and some squashed peanut butter sandwiches. And since the sources of all the world’s major rivers have already been discovered, I decided on something more realistic. I set out to find the source of the most famous water course you probably have never heard of, the Brunstane Burn. The word burn is Scots for a stream.

The Brunstane Burn begins, or perhaps ends, on the shores of the Firth of Forth between Joppa and Fisherrow, as pictured above. It’s not a special burn in any way but it runs for roughly 8-miles across the south of Edinburgh to the lower slopes of the Pentland Hills and it also has around 25 turf zones along its course, so I thought it might make for an interesting turf session. Of course, the Brunstane Burn does not retain that name for long. It later becomes the Niddrie Burn, then the Burdiehouse Burn, and at the Pentland Hills, naming gets even more complicated with multiple tributaries but more of that later.

My epic mini adventure begins on the beach where the Brunstane Burn vanishes into the sea. I had originally intended to dip a toe in the sea but forgot, so didn’t. Our first zone of the day, the nearest one to the start of the Brunstane Burn is zone BrunstaneMill where we start our long haul towards the Pentlands. And it didn’t take long to realise that it will be uphill all the way, which of course, is logical as water always flows downhill. But, on the bright side, the return cycle will be downhill all the way.

Turf Zone – TinyFrenchmen

The route starts following the Brunstane Burn Path, which is also part of the John Muir Way. The first awkward section is crossing the railway line at zone Brunstane but we soon pick up the path again. The route is now also called the Innocent Railway Path and forms part of the National Cycle Network (NCN) Routes 76 and 1. After crossing the railway, the Brunstane Burn becomes the Niddrie Burn, the fabled land of the Naughty Nerds of Niddrie and here I cycled too far west and found myself cycling onwards Duddingston Loch when I should have turned south to follow the Niddrie. I was almost at the Braid Burn another burn that starts at the sea but as the Figgate Burn. However, that’s another adventure for another day.

Back on track, I encounter two members of the Naughty Nerds of Niddrie clan. Two lads all dressed in black, with black SAS-style balaclavas and riding black e-motorcycles, no doubt without any documentation, insurance or licenses whatsoever. Why someone thinks it’s fun to pop wheelies through red traffic lights is beyond even the wildest imagination. I suspect it’s only a matter of time before they become road-kill and depart the gene pool which might not be a bad thing. However, to counterbalance the Naughty Nerds of Niddrie, I must say that the equivalent along the early parts of the Brunstane Burn must be the Bonnie Bouncing Babes of Brunstane. The place seems to be full of well-endowed skinny ladies out running. Not that I’m complaining.

After Niddrie, we enter Little France and lose any means to follow the actual burn itself. The reason being Liberton Golf Course, where, somewhere along the burns hidden course, we have another name change, this time to the Burdiehouse Burn. Crossing Gilmerton Road we pick up the burn again in the leafy glades of Ellen’s Glen and here I must offer a warning. Wet leaves and mud are slippery and I almost landed on my derriere at the bridge crossing, so caution is advised. We also have a choice to make here. Stick with the Burdiehouse Burn or follow the Stenhouse Burn? The latter ends in the Mortonhall area, which is not so interesting, so the Burdiehouse Burn it is.

Now, looking at the map again, I realise I went the wrong way here. Emerging into Ellen’s Glen Road, I should have turned right then picked up the path on the left. Instead, I turned left and followed Hyvot’s Loan but got there in the end. However, the route from here is easy to follow all the way to the A702 where it needs a little thought. At the fork, keep left and use the crossing to negotiate the busy A702. Then follow Old Burdiehouse Road until it ends. There you will see a narrow dirt path on the left that rises up to the new housing estate. You now want to head for zone BurdieBurnWay. Just keep the new houses on your right and follow the path and road around. A narrow path through the trees takes you to the farm road.

Turf Zone – BurdieBurnWay

And zone BurdieBurnWay marks the end of our turf session, at least for today. I did continue to follow the farm tracks, if only to take a photograph where the burn, which splits into various tributaries, disappears under the A720 City of Edinburgh Bypass, as shown below. Note the track here is comprised of fist sized cobbles and is not easy to cycle along. Fine if you have a fat bike but not a skinny tyred bike like the Ribble.

With no easy access under the A720, well, not without getting wet feet by actually going up the burn, I decided to stop here and return another day with a more suitable bike and start on the other side of the bypass. Wallace may have had The Wrong Trousers but I certainly had The Wrong Bike for riding rough stuff in the Pentland Hills. However, my new Sonder Broken Road trail bike is due to arrive this Monday, so I’ll return and pick up the route again with that.

Our quest to find the source of the Brunstane Burn is not all that straight forwards as we reach the upper reaches. Here we have another choice, which tributary do we follow? The Pentland Burn, the Lothian Burn, the Swanston Burn or the Hare Burn. The Swanston ends near a zone, so perhaps that’s the one to aim for. Or perhaps explore them all? A decision and challenge for another day. More again soon. Keep on turfing.

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