No 63 Spring 2015

WEIRD AND WONDERFUL DISCOVERIES!!

River clean-ups have been the focus of our work for the last 25 years and it never ceases to amaze us as to what ends up in the Water of Leith. The river has been used as a dumping ground for generations and the 50 or so river clean-ups we coordinate each year prevents the river from looking like a landfill site. Winter and spring are the best time for a clean-up as the vegetation has died back and we can see where the accumulations of litter have ended up. This winter has been remarkable for the unusual stuff we have found. Amongst the usual shopping trolleys (ASDA and Sainsbury’s – Murrayfield being the worst offenders), bikes, bottles and plastic bags, the following items have been recovered; a snail rocking chair, a motorbike, a meerkat bedside lamp, a Swarovski crystal necklace, cricket bats, wellies and walking boots, a child’s play tunnel, a pair of fake boobs, a large BBQ, and many car, van, and bike parts. More sinisterly we have also found a number of bags of ‘swag’ mostly jewellery and wallets which we have returned to the Leith Police and two safes from Greggs were pulled from the river at Redbraes. To highlight the diversity of items we retrieve from the river we have suspended items in large Perspex tubes in our exhibition space, showing clearly how human rubbish can harm the river and its wildlife. The work cleaning up the river continues this year and on Sunday 29th March – River Clean Up we will be launching the Big Annual Spring Clean-up at the Visitor Centre from 10.00 – this is open to all so if you have never joined in a clean-up why not come along – we will even give you lunch. After this event a further dozen clean-ups will the taking place along 12 miles of the river during April and May – so watch out for a clean-up taking place in your area. The clean-up is being supported by Keep Scotland Beautiful who have gifted us £250 from Tesco carrier bag fund to buy some new waders. page 1

BY TRAIN TO WORK - AND HOME FOR LUNCH !!

In the 1920s a businessman with a home in Colinton and an office in Edinburgh City could take a morning train on the 15 minute journey from Colinton Station to Princes Street – and have time to travel home and back at lunchtime ! Those were the days ! During the heyday of the Caledonian Railway’s Balerno Branch, which opened in 1874 and closed to passengers in 1943, the line coped with up to 21 passenger trains daily, carrying over 250,000 passengers a year, with a fare of just 9d. (old money) between Colinton and Princes St. Station. A chance to recall those halcyon days will be available at the Water of Leith Visitor Centre, on the 21st and 22nd March, when Alistair Dickson will show his acclaimed 22ft. long, 4mm. scale working model of Colinton Station and the adjacent Porage Mill. Alistair grew up in Currie and the Balerno branch was part of his early life. He now resides in Yorkshire where the layout was developed, but this is a rare opportunity to see it in action, not only in Scotland, but close to the original railway site. The attention to detail and realism is remarkable and will be a talking point for those who remember the station and its surroundings. In addition to the layout there will be a display of maps and photographs of the Branch and an opportunity to join a guided walk from Colinton to Slateford along the old track bed (now the Water of Leith Walkway). During the weekend there will be a number of different activities going on including: Regular talks by Alistair on the creation of the model, 2.00pm on the Saturday and 11.30am on the Sunday. Vintage model wagons with be run on the line to evoke an earlier era. A reminiscence corner and hopefully some children’s activities. For more details contact us on 0131 455 7367

Sat 21st March and Sun 22nd March Balerno Branch Railway Weekend Open 10am to 4pm Admission to the Exhibition is free, although a donation to defray costs would be welcome.

Sunday 22nd March – Railway Ramble Join this special guided walk to discover the route of the old railway from Colinton to Slateford. Meet at 1.00pm in the Car park under Gillespie bridge in Colinton, off Bridge Road £4.00 (members £2) BOOKING ESSENTIAL. The walk will finish at the Visitor Centre where you can visit the special exhibition.

Youth Programme receives Lottery Funding

We are delighted to announce that we have been awarded over £9000 to run ‘Outside’ - Youth Development Project on the Water of Leith. The project aims to engage young people in our work, the focus will be on improving understanding and respect for the river, through hands on learning and practical workdays. With the objective to deliver 20 practical workdays, 10 placements, and 15 award experiences over the year. Amounting to around 2000 hours of volunteering or participation from young people aged 11 to 25. As Ellie Goulding and Calvin Harris sing ‘Outside - there is a power in what you do’. And this project is all about ‘doing’ activities outside, learning from and sharing your experiences, while improving skills and employability. To achieve this we will employ and resource an ‘Outside’ Project Worker for 2 days per week to focus on the delivery of the workdays and work with schools and unemployment agencies to deliver placements and award experiences. We also want to create a social media hub for the project - for all young people across the project to share experiences, photos and spread the word to their friends and contacts – using Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. Since 2005 we have noticed an escalating desire from young people to engage in our work; as volunteers, attending practical workdays with existing youth groups such as the Rock Trust, or on work experience placements. We have seen clear benefits to the individuals involved and feel our organisation is stronger with this new layer of engagement. We also hope this project will halt disengagement with the outside by young people, enabling them to experience the joys and challenges our natural world can throw at us and reduce casual littering and petty vandalism through increased awareness and respect for the river and its environment. If recruitment goes well we hope to start the project in May. page 2

From Source to Sea

Mosses and Liverworts At the end of January members enjoyed a fascinating talk at the Visitor Centre. Dr Chamberlain, Research Associate, Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh talked about the survey he and his colleagues have recently made of the bryophytes (mosses and liverworts) along the river as part of the Urban Flora Project.

This winter an intrepid team from the Friends of the Pentlands and ourselves set off to discover the source of the Water of Leith and walk the unchartered territory from the spring to Balerno. Over two days the team of 5, hiked from the A70 at the Crosswood Reservoir towards the indistinct summit of Mealowther, then headed north to find the first Colzium spring – the source. Charlotte took a drink (pictured) and off they trekked following the wee burn to Harperrig Reservoir. With no path it was hard going and the group had to frequently negotiate bogs and cross the river. On a separate day they continued the walk from the reservoir to Balerno which was a little easier to follow but the thickets of gorse and scores of fences slowed progress. So we have charted the route – and this got us thinking!! Why not plan a walk from source to sea in a day and make it a fundraising activity.....and the Solstice Source to Sea Challenge was born. On Sunday 21st June – An adventurous team will attempt to walk some 30 miles from the source of the Water of Leith to Leith during the longest day. We estimate the walk will take the team over 10 hours to walk the first ‘wild’ section, starting around 6 am. Heading off on the ‘easy leg’ from Balerno around 4pm, with the aim of being in Leith for around 8pm. Once we have worked out the logistics and finalised the team of walkers we hope you will support their efforts by sponsoring the team or an individual taking part. Or why not join in with the challenge and walk the final 12 ¾ miles from Balerno to Leith. We still have a few spaces for walkers for the whole challenge; Helen and Charlotte are both in training to take part. Contact us if you are interested in joining the ‘elite’ team!!

A remarkable 208 species of bryophytes can be found along the Water of Leith. Their distributions vary depending on the altitude, underlying geology and the degree of urbanisation along the river. There are some very interesting species found along the river, including rarities such as Hennediella stanfordensis which is found in Dean Village, one of only three records from the whole of Scotland and the very rare Physcomitrium sphaericum which is found at Harperrig Reservoir. Tetraplodum mnoides seems to be a bit of an oddity, the only plant of this species along the river has been found growing in what seemed to be an old owl pellet! Bryophytes have fascinating life cycles, for example Didymodum sinuosus has curly ends to its leaves which snap off and fall into the river to float somewhere else and propagate the next generation! Some species, such as Orthotrichum pulchellum, have become more common since the Clean Air Act of 1993. To follow up on this talk we will be hosting a ‘Bryophytes of the Water of Leith’ workshop and field trip in November in conjunction with the Botanical Society of Scotland. In the meantime don’t ignore these often over looked plants. They can be very beautiful but admittedly a quite tricky group of plants to identify

Moss and Liverworts growing together in The Dells

Thank you to volunteer Juliet Wilson for this article and photo. You can discover more about Juliet though her blog http://craftygreenpoet.blogspot.com/

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Spring Guided Walks & Events Sunday 26th April – Floral Delights of the Dells

River News Roundup......

The Fishing season is almost upon us, running from 1st April to 30th September. We remind readers of the rules;

Discover the beautiful wildflowers of Craiglockhart • Catch and Release Only, return all fish Dell and learn the secrets of identification. Guided • Barbless Hooks to be used at all times Walk. £4 (Members £2) BOOKING ESSENTIAL • Permits are non transferable and must be carried at all times and produced on request of Honorary Meet at 2.00pm at the Water of Leith Visitor Centre .

Saturday 9th May – PLANT SALE

Visit our now famous annual plant sale and pick up a bargain. Doors open at 10.00am at the Visitor Centre. 50p admission donation.

Sunday 31st May – Art Walk from Belford to Canonmills

Join us to discover the hidden art treasures along the Walkway from the Gallery of Modern Art to Canonmills. From industrial relics to stunning wells. £4 (members £2) BOOKING ESSENTIAL. Meet at 2.00pm at the entrance to the Gallery of Modern Art off Belford Road (near the buried Gormley Statue)

CHILDREN’S EASTER EVENTS

All events cost £4 per child (Accompanying adult free) & start at 2.00pm until 3.30pm ish BOOKING ESSENTIAL 0131 455 7367 admin@ waterofleith.org.uk

Bailiffs, Police Officers and Fisheries Officers Methods of Fishing on the Water of Leith are: • Balerno to Bogs Bridge in the Dells - Fly Fishing Only • Bogs Bridge to Leith - fly or bait fishing • Spinning is Prohibited • Fixed Line is Prohibited • Please remove all discarded line and tackle and ALL RUBBISH from the river banks

Permits and an extensive range of flies will be available from the Visitor Centre soon. Phase 2 of the Flood Prevention Scheme at Murrayfield has been given the go ahead and funding secured. The final designs and environmental statements are in production and it is anticipated that work will start in autumn 2015. We hope to have a fuller report for the next issue.

Hello Deer!

Thank you to Gary Fox for this amazing image of a Roe Deer captured in Juniper Green.

Thursday 9th April – Blooming Marvellous Bursting with life and fun, join us for this spring themed craft session Tuesday 16th April – Spring Wilderness Survival Skills Water, Food, Shelter and Fire are the keys to survival, learn new skills from our ‘wild’ women If you have an article, letter or photo for the next edition of Under the Bridge please send it to: Water of Leith Conservation Trust, 24 Lanark Road, Edinburgh, EH14 1TQ [email protected]

How to join the Trust Please enrol me/us as a Friend of the Water of Leith Conservation Trust. I enclose the following payment: Individual membership £16 per year Family £30 per year Concessionary rate (retired or unemployed; students) £10 per year Group (schools annd voluntary bodies) £32 per year Life membership £150 single payment Name.........................................................................................................................

Date ..............................

Address.....................................................................................................................

Tel No ..............................

.................................................................................................................................. Please post form and payment to: Trust Administrator, Water of Leith Visitor Centre, 24 Lanark Road, Edinburgh EH14 1TQ www.waterofleith.org.uk [email protected] 0131 455 7367 Registered Charity No. SC000015 page 4