A taster for those who would look…

The John Muir crosses Scotland from Dunbar to Helensburgh passing around Falkirk and visiting the Falkirk Wheel on the Way west. For the keen walker, the Wheel can also be a jumping off point for the intrepid wanting to head North along the coast and specifically the Fife Coastal Path which runs from Kincardine in the bottom left hand corner of Fife up to Newburgh on the Tay. In so doing it potentially connect parts of a North Sea Trail that is at present an idea, with a possiblibility of becoming a reality. The Fife Coastal Path is both interesting and beautiful, and offers the opportunity of continuing a truly North Sea Trail, with your sleeve brushing the waterside all along the way.

This walk looks to outline a pathway between the John Muir way at the Wheel through to the start of the Fife Coastal Path at Kincardine. The John Muir Way also leads directly on to the West Highland Way, route 1 to the Highlands and now linked to many of the sought after wild highlands. It also passes directly through Edinburgh, so that this means that, for instance, Edinburgh becomes a jumping off point for a path that leads directly into the Highlands. Given Edinburgh’s “Guid conceit of itsel” , there is a journey on offer into the heart of the highlands.

The Wheel itself is a connector. The original canal, the Forth and Clyde, ran between Bowling on the Clyde in the West to Grangemouth on the Forth to the east. Subsequently the good burghers of Edinburgh wanted in, and the Union Canal was proposed and built.

The John Muir follows the line of the Antonine Wall to reach the Wheel: on a good day the views north are spectacular with views across the Forth to the Ochils and beyond. You can reasonably expect to see two Munro’s, Ben Vorlich and Stuc a’ Chroin to the north west. The cafe at the wheel is pretty good. The Wheel itself has become a huge attraction, and it is very much on the coach tour round. The irony of the Antonine Wall snuggling at the top of the wall is not to be lost. I spent time a couple of summers ago doing an amateur guide bit, which didn’t get anywhere in a business sense but did lead to several interesting conversations. Must go back and do it again…

The land that the Wheel now stands on is reclaimed land, and the scubland across the canal is evidence of industrial past. The area, Camelon, originally boasted nail-making and developed tar-making and other industries because of the canal. The Falkirk area was known for its foundaries none of which remain. The walk along the canal is a bit depressing in that the littering is awful, and the evidence of the social habits of the locals of the locals i.e. beer cans, bottles and general food packing is quite evident. When walking, I sometimes use discarded plastic backs to collect litter in which I dump in suitable recepticles. I know a couple of other people who have done the same thing. On one occasion on this stretch I passed a woman with a buggy and know that she dropped a plastic bottle because I picked it up on my return leg. Which is really disappointing, and I guess quite symptomatic of our valuation of our own environments.

So, if you’re walking along the route, expect to see a lack of social pride. But also evidence of social pride as well. But more of that later

Walking to Kincardine

The original canal, the Forth and Clyde was the canal built to connect the Clyde and Glasgow with the North at Grangemouth. The completion of the Canal in 1790 called Grangemouth into existence and stimulated the trade and commerce central to the industrial revolution in Scotland. The mining of coal, so key to the developing heavy industries, supported heavy industry throughout the Forth and Clyde Valley. In so doing it created an industrial society and culture characterized by both great wealth for some, and a hard living for the folk of Scotland.

The surge that marked the approach of the Millennium led to the injection of money which allowed a desire for old glories to return. Funding was applied to resurrect the canal system in Central Scotland. This necessitated reconnecting the high level Union Canal with the the Forth and Clyde, and the solution was to create a new canal from where the old lock staircase began to connect with the hugely innovative Wheel to the west.

The second canal, the Union canal, connected with the Forth and Clyde at Lock Sixteen and the drop from the Union at a higher level down to the lower level was done by a ladder of some eleven locks. In their heyday, the canals were the cutting edge of technology, connecting commerce and people between the two coasts. During the mid-20th Century, the canals had fallen into disuse and disrepair were left to rot. The ladder of locks were filled in, although the Union Inn, the centre of the canal system, remained and still remains'.

Port Downie was a key centre in the development of trade and industry from the late 1700’s and deep into the 19th Century. The bridge at Lock 16 is these days busy enough, but not too busy with road traffice; there is virtually no canal traffic on what was once the artery of industrial Scotland. Along the canal Falkirk and Grangemouth were industrial areas, the epitome of dark satanic mills, or in this locality, tar works, coal mines, foundries and warehouses. The Link Route follows the canal although the buildings and works on the bankside have changed. Port Downie itself was a nest of basins and barges, now filled in, an open space where there was once water.

The walk to Kincardine begins at the Falkirk Wheel, crossing the canal over the swing bridge to the north bank, and turning right. The towpath heads east with the canal on the right. The path is between the canal and Camelon, an area which was built around fabricating nails but more recently the site of a large tar-works. The whole southern bank of the Canal was an industrial area, stretching from the high station in the east to Bonnybridge. In addition to the Antonine Wall, the area is the site of coal and iron mining, with the former tar works and British Steel works occupying the bank between the wheel and the Union Inn. The first leg of the Link means crossing the canal and walking along to Lock 16, which was in its day a huge industrial hub: it was where the Union Canal joined the Forth and Clyde after the good burghers of Edinburgh belatedly realised it may be a good idea to be connected by canal to the west coast. That connection was reinstated with the building of the wheel by the Wheel as part of the millennium investment.

The walk description includes a series of (not to scale) maps for guidance. However the walk is mostly south to north which is a bit confusing: it meant that to sequence the writing alongside the map sequence is a bit odd. But with a bit of referring back to the gallery below, hopefully things will be clear: the route is basically east to the Forth and then north. A word of warning: it is not really possible to walk along the shore so the path north follows the road.

The slides below show the route in order: click to see the route slide by slide

Click on the maps below to follow the route. Buses available between the Kelpies and the Wheel

- leave the car at either end and bus back

The route follows the left bank of the Canal (careful at the bridge roundabout) and passes the Lock Inn. A personal comment is that my sole dutiful visit to the Union Inn was somewhat underwhelming and a trifle gloomy. By contrast, the Canal Inn was a pleasant visit, just one Lock down. A far pleasanter gaff, cosy. And the folks tidying up in the morning are happy to comment on the weather.

Apart from the Wheel and the Kelpies (both are on this route), Falkirk doesn’t feature too highly in the places to visit in Scotland stakes: the previous top of the list has been the Dunmore Pineapple which lurks near the Forth past the Kincardine Bridge, with the 1746 Falkirk Battle memorial an also ran. If you can find it….. However, Falkirk tries and, for instance, the cutouts lurking on the towpath are a bit special if not really spectacular. The celebration of folk who have made a contribution places and communities, marking the passage of people through this life is, I guess, a celebration of everyman (everyperson?). A celebration of the ordinary person, and perhaps the egalitarian “I kennt his faither.” (I knew his father)

Irn Bru as we know it was invented in Falkirk. Fact. Despite what the weegies say. Geoff Bailey says it was invented in Falkirk, so it has got to be true. He is, after all, the Archaeologist & Keeper of Local History for Falkirk, and worthy of the title. Now a closed Barr’s Factory still stands beside the Union Inn.

In the photo above, there is a chimney (left of picture behind left most figure) in the background. This belongs to what was the Rosebank Distillery, sited next to the canal, with its old bonded warehouse now serving as an eatery. It is being preserved (Feb 2020) whilst the warehouses around it are being… changed

The Path runs past the Rosebank Eatery, and dips down under the busy Glasgow Road to pop up on the towpath opposite the old distillery itself, with handy info boards explaining the whys and wherefores. The run down to the Forth after the bridge is managed by a series of locks with the substantial stonework characteristic of the Forth and Clyde.

The path/cycle path (beware of psychlepaths) runs under the road bridge that now carries the road out towards the west and Glasgow. The path diverts over the railway, cyclists by-passing the steps either side of the railway to Lock 8

Crossing the canal and escaping Falkirk via Camelon was achieved by means of a bascule bridge (see later) i.e. a lifty uppy bridge which was subsequently replaced by a swing bridge which would carry the circular tramway. Camelon itself made nails in small workshops off what is now the Glasgow Road. It had a friend in Bainsford, closer to the Forth (see below).

The route follows the canal north-east with a shimmy up to the road and down again to pass over the railway which passes over the canal at lock 9. In modern times the raising of a bridge over the railway has obscured some of the view.

Top: Barge progressing through Lock 8 on its way to Port Downie

Lock 9 Keeper’s Cottage visible in background

Bottom left: Lock Keeper’s Cottage, Lock 9

Bottom right: Lock 8 with Lock Keeper’s Cotage visible behind railway gantry

The Link Route follows the pathway to Bainsford Bridge, in former times a key choke point for traffic when the bridge was a bascule bridge which opened to let canal canal traffic to pass.The Link Route follows the pathway to Bainsford Bridge, in former times a key choke point for traffic when the bridge was a bascule bridge which opened to let canal canal traffic to pass.

After Lock 9, the walk through to Bainsford bridge is not particularly exciting, but has a hotch potch of buildings including a fairly new secondary school, St Mungo’s High School which is a bit impressive. The locks were recently refurbished: not all the locks have lock gates. In fairness, the boating traffic doesn’t place a great burden on the canal these days. More walkers than sailors…. Carry on to Lock 5 at Bainsford.

The walk from lock 8 to Lock 5 is 1 km almost exactly. About a quarter of an hour walking.

The walk is boundaried for much of the time by a wall. It seems that the folk of Falkirk and Bainsford had a healthy regard for stone walls, and there’s a fair few lurking around the canal mixed in with later additions. Stone was a fairly easily come by building material

Lock 5 now occurs slightly before the site of the old bridge and the current road bridge. The Millenium surge was responsible for many things, including rebranding bridges over the canal. So MM millenium marks (there’s a lot of latin going on aroun here) occur frequently along the canal, unsurprisingly because the revamp was a Big Thing.

The canal path (and the Link Route) take another dive under the roadway

Beyond Bainsford Bridge and Lock 5, the land opens up. Initially the canal runs through a cut down to where the original lock 5 was. The map below shows the original positon of Lock 5, by the Gas Works.

Falkirk was a town built on iron founding, starting with the development of the Carron Company in the latter end of the 18th century. The town was built on iron. The iron industry was the core of the town and the means of developing that industry was the canal and the rich resources of coal and iron in the area. Initially the means of transporting coal and iron was based on the canal, but with the coming of the railway age, commerce moved away from the canal and onto the railways. As a consequence the canal past Bainsford Bridge was increasingly served by the (competing) railways.

A railway line was created behind the warehouses and foundries along the canal to service the canal and, increasingly importantly, the Port of Grangemouth. Effectively, over a period of time, the balance of commercial and industrial activity shifted down the canal from the Union/Forth and Clyde junction at lock 16  to the Port, increasingly serviced by  railways. The quality of the build along the canal is noticeably varied in age and style, from stone walled buildings to the west of this building and the warehouse wall to the east. The route continues down the canal and the walk down the canal bank means walking along a mixter-maxter of architectures reflecting a haphazard growth in buildings notable for function rather than appearance.

There is this thing that walking to a visible point in the distance being a bit soul destroying (hah: you should see North Mullardoch) . The Kelpies are worth it though: nothing over-taxing in the excitement stakes, but pleasant and interesting. Lots of open space and the Kelpies themselves are a bit special. After the bridge and just round the corner.

The canal’s heyday was before the coming of steam and rail travel, with the railways came the decline of the canal. The original Lock 5 was after Bainsford Bridge has lost its gates: Lock 5 these days is before the bridge, and Lock 4 is not a lock. So after Bainsford, the next real lock is Lock 4. Which is a healthy sort of lock. Very locky: you know: lock gates, paddles, levers, that kind of thing, and is close to the “new” road bridge over the Carron which is actually the old rail bridge, which was a swing bridge.

to the River Carron from the Kelpies (behind the Kelpies to the north). The canal turns left at right angles because the original line of the canal ran up to the Forth to where the Carron empties into the Forth.

The route takes you through the Kelpies (and past the visitor centre which is worth a visit) to a path under the motorway. The path is part of the Charlotte Dundas Trail, (aw, come on: trail? 850 metres?). Seeing as how I am inventing this trail I guess I should nod in the direction of an existing route, even just an 850 metre one. Anyhow, part of the deal with the Kelpies was the (re)-construction of the canal link to the port. This adjusts the route of the canal to avoid the estate that developed to house the residents of Glensburgh and the Auld Toon.

The walk continues to the old main road to Grangemouth. The old road was superseded by the motorway but remains quite busy. Cross the Carron using the bridge and head off to the east along the path: the bridge over the Carron. like this part of the canal, is new. The bridgeThere’s usually horses there. Say hello. It’s polite. Passing over the bridge means passing into an a world where coal was king, and men (and women and children) laboured underthe Forth to dig the coal that fuelled industry.

The route follows the path along the north bank of the Carron passing through what appears to be a pastoral scene. Try that a hundred years ago: this is an part of the huge Scottish coalfield where coal was mined until the mid-80’s and the death of coal mining in the age of Thatcher. There is evidence of earler mining if the walker looks carefully.

The route leads up to a small ridge with trees on it, which gives views over the foreshore. It attracts twitchers who scan the saline lagoons there for our feathered friends.

In the Autumn, the area around the Forth and Kincardine is home to migrating geese taking time to feed up before moving on. Living in the area, the sight of skeins of geese flying over in great numbers is magnificent, so if you are walking in October you should not be surprised to see a sight that should warm your soul. Follow the footpath, but be aware that it is not possible to walk too close to the Forth.

Walking and writing about the various ways and understanding what was happening in the past is greatly aided by the Godfrey Edition folks who turn out annotated versions of old OS maps. These are spectacularly helpful and bring to life The firm is very approachable and has a person touch. I recommend them highly.

The 1896 map shows the five pits that made up the Grangemouth Colliery: Zetland, Lady, Barony, Palace (pronounced locally as Pale-iss) and Towncroft.

Mining in the area is well described in Guthrie Hutton’s book “Mining from Kirkintilloch to Clackmannan & Stirling to Slamannan”.

The map below is from 1896, and shows the Barony Pit no. 3, which is the dark trees in the photo. The 1896 map shows the five pits that made up the Grangemouth Colliery: Zetland, Lady, Barony, Palace (pronounced locally as Pale-iss) and Towncroft. In the trees are a few facing stones which are the remains of the pit: the ground in the wood is unsurprisingly very coal slaggy. In the 50’s boats were still being launched in the Carron although that business is gone, and the huge petro-chemical complex is the inheritor of the docks and industy that were the result of the openinng of the Forth and Clyde Canal and the creation of the town of Grangemouth.

This followed the kidnapping of Tom Sutherland, a son of Stonehouse Farm, subsequently an agriculture lecturer who was kidnapped in 1985 by Jihadi militants on a visit to the Lebanon. He was released on November 18, 1991 at the same time as Terry Waite, having been held hostage for 2,353 days. 

Walking and writing about the various ways and understanding what was happening in the past is greatly aided by the Godfrey Edition folks who turn out annotated versions of old OS maps. These are spectacularly helpful and bring to life The firm is very approachable and has a person touch. I recommend them highly.

Mining in the area is well described in Guthrie Hutton’s book “Mining from Kirkintilloch to Clackmannan & Stirling to Slamannan”.

In the Spring and Autumn, the area around the Forth and Kincardine is home to migrating geese taking time to feed up before moving on. Living in the area, the sight of skeins of geese flying over in great numbers is magnificent, so if you are walking in October you should not be surprised to see a sight that should warm your soul. Follow the footpath, but be aware that it is not possible to walk too close to the Forth.

The road continues past Powfoulis, past the track to the RSPB office which may or may not be there now: there was an initiative called the Inner Forth Initiative which sought to bring some cohesion to ecological and tourist developments in the area. The route is followed up to the A876 and the path-and-cycleway that leads to the Kincardine Bridge: the Kingdom of Fife lies there as does the beginning of the Fife Coastal path.

The connection is made.

The John Muir Way also leads directly on to the West Highland Way, route 1 to the Highlands and now linked to much of the sought after wild highlands. It also passes directly through Edinburgh, so that this means that, for instance, Edinburgh becomes a jumping off point for a path that leads directly into the Highlands. Given Edinburgh’s “Guid conceit of itsel” , there is a journey on offer into the heart of the highlands.