Arthur's Seat, Edinburgh

Ruined chapel on Arthur's Seat

Arthur's Seat is a natural inner city escape. Walking through the valleys in and around this landmark you could easily forget that you're in the city centre. It's an easy climb to go up to the top of the hill and well worth the effort because the view is fantastic! On lazy days, you can just do half the height and climb the Salisbury Craggs which are at the front of the hill. There's also a scenic drive around the hill, which you can drive or cycle around if you don't fancy walking. On one side of the hill is a man-made lake, popular with ducks and people feeding ducks. It would be nice if the council would put in some picnic tables for summer BBQs -- but don't get me started on the Edinburgh Council's lack of lifestyle-oriented town planning. I should just try to accept the fact that they don't care about this stuff. You won't find a picnic table in sight. Anywhere in Edinburgh. Okay, end of ranting. Sorry :)

The trick to climbing Arthur's Seat safely and easily is to go up the tourist path. There are loads of other routes up to the top, but some routes are better not attempted, unless you'd like to come home bruised and scratched. There are a few bushes around the top of the hill which really really hurt. Not sure what they're called, but in summer they have yellow flowers and smell lovely. You can see some of these bushes in the photo below where I am looking very sore and sorry after having slid most of the way down the back of Arthur's Seat. Steps have been put in since.