Blogs from Jedburgh, Roxburghshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, Europe

24000 steps and 16 km. Seems the book is wrong or they haven’t updated it and the route has maybe changed. Woke up at 7 am to hard rain and we were concerned about the days walk. By breakfast the rain had stopped and the sun was shining. It was a very pleasant day with the sun shinning but the wind held a coolness. We walked through cattle country, harvested fields and forests with pleasant paths. The forest had its own intrigue with meadows of ferns. During the walk we could see about us rain but it stayed away all day. The last few kilometres were spent walking on pavement which isn’t easy on your feet. In all it was a short days walk and once reaching Morebattle, our stay for the evening, we relaxed with ... read more

We drove down to the Scottish borders today to visit a few abbeys. First we visited Jedburgh which is a lovely border town, when we arrived we went for lunch at the coffee corner which is a great wee spot to refuel before going to the Abbey. Jedburgh Abbey is a stunning building, the first church was built on the site at 830, then a bishop from Glasgow built the existing abbey in 1138, vaults, undercrofts and cellars were also built in the early 1200's within the grounds. Jedburgh Abbey had to endure four major attacks between 1409-1523 which destroyed most of the complex. Now there is much conservation work being done to keep the remaining buildings in tact and what is left standing is very beautiful to see. We also walked round the ruins of ... read more

Hello All, So Kaitlyn and I took an Arcadia free trip down to the borders. Our bus made a stop at Traquair House, the town of Melrose and Roslyn Chapel all the while following the River Tweed. Traquair House is the oldest standing Catholic household on the main land of Scotland. Mary Queen of Scots and her baby son James stayed there, so did Bonnie Prince Charlie who the reason why the front gates of the house will never be opened again, at least until a Stuart once again sits on the English throne (unlikely that). All the furniture, knickknacks, and most importantly the harpsichord and tapestries are all authentic to the house and the Stuart-Maxwell family, that has lived in that house for over six hundred years. Not only does the house hold treasures beyond ... read more

After Jedburgh, we went to Melrose, we they also have an impressive abbey built by King David in the 1100's to show England how tough Scotland was, and which England also trashed a couple of times.... read more

After a very quiet night in Moffat, a tiny city on the way to Stranraer, we decided to make the most of the day we had left, and drive through Dumfries and on to Stranraer...it was on the way to Dumfries, at around 11am that I realised, instead of staying the night in Stranraer, we could get a ferry over to Ireland that afternoon, and not only save a night's accommodation, but also catch up with mum, dad, KB and Ryan, plus all the relies, SOONER!! EXCELLENT! Iz thought I had been scheming this up for days, but it had only just occurred to me...so we had a quick look around Dumfries, then rang the oldies to see if an earlier arrival would suit them...mum didn't have her phone on, dad's went straight to message bank, ... read more