My dad died in October 2010 and after the funeral, my sister and her two children (4½ and 2½ months) were able to stay with me and my mum for some much needed family time. We took some day trips out to places we had been to with my dad, taking a picnic and creating […]

Do you know the difference between a gargoyle and a grotesque? While both can appear as fantastical creatures or monstrous figures, and often have a symbolic meaning, gargoyles are functional – they were designed to drain water away from the sides of buildings, whilst grotesques are purely decorative. So, while all gargoyles are grotesques, not […]

The geology of the River Tweed catchment is both diverse and historically significant, playing a key role in the development of modern geological science. The River Tweed flows through a landscape shaped by ancient rocks, glacial activity, and tectonic forces. Its catchment forms a horseshoe-shaped rim of hills surrounding a flatter basin, with a mix […]

Wandering through the scenic landscape of the Borderlands, you might stumble upon curious stones and markers that whisper tales of the past. One such haunting relic is the Meuchel Stone, near Horndean in Berwickshire. This weathered grave marker commemorates a packman—a term used to describe an itinerant trader in the 19th century who roamed rural […]

From the earliest Neolithic settlers to modern-day artisans, sheep farming has shaped the region’s economy, culture, and landscape. Powered by the river, and later wind and steam, early mills transformed local wool into high-quality textiles sold across the globe. The hardy Border Cheviot sheep, bred in the uplands of Ettrick, Yarrow, and the Cheviot Hills, […]

Books possess a remarkable power to whisk us away to different times and places. The Borders has long been a muse for writers, inspiring them to create enduring poetry, ballads, and literature that beautifully depict our landscape. Sir Walter Scott drew on Scottish history and landscapes to inspire his timeless classics including several books which […]