May. 13, 2009 - Issue #708: Three Square Meals
Travel: A wee, pint-sized climb
Short but rewarding trek unveils Edinburgh's character
Stepping out of Edinburgh Central I'm momentarily paralyzed by the vista before me: an ancient castle in front, the Scottish Highlands behind. I stand on the North Bridge in a crowd of hipsters and families, none of whom seem like they're in a rush to go anywhere.
"Wearh yuh goohan luv?" asks the incomprehensible taxi driver. I stare blankly for a moment before the light bulb switches on and I'm able to interpret the thick Scottish brogue.
"Oh right, where am I going," I say. "Arthur's Seat, please." He winds the taxi up, down and around the rolling hills. The wheels bounce along the narrow cobblestone streets, jostling me like a steel ball in a pinball machine. In only a matter of seconds it seems as though we've left the city behind.
Just one mile east of the Edinburgh Castle we arrive at Arthur's Seat, a name that goes back to the days of King Arthur. The term "seat" is used in Scotland to describe a high hilltop. This seat is a local landmark formed out of igneous rock from what was once a volcano over two million years ago. At only 251 metres high it's not exactly an extreme challenge. But the natural setting, the history and the opportunity to immerse in local culture qualify it as a worthwhile stop on a traveller's itinerary, beyond the city itself.
The cabbie drops me at the foot of the main peak in Holyrood Park—a cluster of hills in the expansive 650-acre royal park in central Edinburgh—and I'm left on my own to decide how I'm going to tackle the climb.
The hill can be climbed from any direction, but if you want to minimize the challenge, it's best to figure out which way is east before ascending. The east side is the easiest way to go up. But I manage to suffer from a severe case of misdirection when I begin huffing and puffing my way up a long set of stone stairs on the Seat's west side.
Tiring but not rigorous, I make my way to a flat grassy point halfway up. Here, I break to take in the sights of the city-meets-countryside, staring directly towards Edinburgh Castle.
After getting enough of the view I start trekking my way to the top, wondering as I go if I'll blow off by the time I get up there. I'm only halfway and it already feels like I'm leaning into gale-force winds.
The difficult part of the hike is behind me but with the winds moving at such high speed, I proceed with caution. Inching along I finally reach the top. It's as if I'm in a wind tunnel—I put all my weight forward and the wind effortlessly props me up.
I'm rewarded, however, with a 360-degree view of Edinburgh—in King Arthur's time, a view that attackers used to plan how they would descend on the city. And I share what becomes a very crowded rocky peak of Arthur's Seat with a number of others, some who are out for their leisurely Sunday stroll. Others, like me, have come to see the sights of Edinburgh.
Looking to mix things up, I start to head down on the flatter east side of the Seat. With chained railings and groomed paths, it's clear that this side of the Seat is designed more for the Sunday strollers than the gung-ho hikers.
"How yuh duing?" a Scottish hiker greets me as he passes, hiking stick in hand. It's his fourth trip around the Seat that day. Like many other locals, he didn't get his great physique just looking out his kitchen window at Arthur's Seat.
The Seat is part of the city that Edinburghers have come to appreciate, quite often in greater numbers than the tourists. It is just as much a part of everyday life to people here now as it was to locals during medieval times.
As I cross the Seat to get over to the far side where there are castle ruins, I cross paths with a couple carrying a bag of groceries. I guess hiking the Seat was just en route. I traverse the hill hoping to stretch out the half-day adventure but it isn't long before I begin to feel a drop fall out of the gray sky. I quickly make my descent before I get caught in the middle of Scotland's famous horizontal rain.
Not wanting to mess with the easy going Scottish style, I leisurely make my way back to the side of the Seat where a pub is conveniently located. It's packed, probably with those who fled the bad weather that was attacking Arthur's Seat. I walk up to the bar to get a pint, my second dose of Edinburgh culture easily canceling out the exercise I managed to do in the first half of my day. V
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