We have visited Edinburgh many times over the years, and so shops have been shopped, castles have been visited, and tourist haunts have been haunted.

And so on a dreich day in mid August, feeling more reminiscent of late Autumn, we "ticked off" a climb of Arthur's Seat. Conditions on the summit would be best described as "40mph fog". We were denied the spectacular views across the Firth of Forth, but at least the wind kept the midges at bay, and in any event, "a bad day on a mountain is better than a good day in the office".

Today couldn't be more different to yesterday...summer has returned, bright sunshine and blue skies...is this really Scotland?

Todays itinerary involves a visit to Helix Park, Falkirk, an area of civic regeneration, which has, at it's heart, two 30 metre high sculptures, designed by Andy Scott. Called "The Kelpies", as a nod to the shape shifting water spirits of Scottish folklore, and representing the heavy horses which featured in industry, agriculture and as tow horses on the nearby Forth and Clyde canal. The sculptures were built in 2013 beside a specially constructed canal turning pool.

Very occasionally we are blessed to see a truly inspirational example of public art, which causes us to stop and think. We actually visited Anthony Gormley's Angel of the North on our way to Edinburgh, it is one such example, The Kelpies are undoubtedly another. They are quite simply beautiful.

Leaving the Kelpies behind, and the car in the car park, we set off walking the tow path of the Forth and Clyde canal. Our destination, some 6 miles away, is another example of stunning innovative engineering, The Falkirk Wheel.


The Falkirk Wheel is a rotating boat lift. It links the Forth and Clyde canal with the Union Canal. Originally a flight of 11 locks connected these 2 canal systems but the locks fell into disrepair in the 1930's, repair and reinstatement would have been prohibitively expensive, and so a dramatic 21st century solution was sought. Hydraulic boat lifts have been built before (eg the Anderton Boat Lift in Cheshire), inspired by a double headed Celtic axe, the wheel, opened in 2002, and lifts boats 24 metres to a new aqueduct extension of the Union canal. The wheel carries 2 watertight "gimballed" caissons, which, due to Archimedean principles are always perfectly balanced, regardless of the load contained in each.