A new baby, lockdown, a journey. The drive, from the borderlands of Northumberland to the Pentland hills. Beside me the obligatory hand gel and face masks, meagre defence against this rampant virus. Covid. The radio chatters, talking of the R number rising, scary statistics of deaths and rates of infections. The world will close down […]

My Great, Great grandfather John Brown, was the “Dominie” in Tweedsmuir for 41 years until 1895 when he died. His grave is in Tweedsmuir kirkyard. He was born in Peebles, in Kerfield in 1825, where his father was assistant gardener, the oldest of 10 children. He was possibly the teacher at Stobo before Tweedsmuir, but […]

Beneath our feet lie geological clues about our distant past and evidence of how life evolved on Earth. In Berwickshire and north Northumberland, the most common rocks are Carboniferous limestones, mudstones and sandstones. In the lowlands surrounding the River Tweed, the bedrock is covered by thick glacial deposits of clay, silt and sand. Embedded in […]

The Union Chain Bridge spans the River Tweed between the parishes of Hornclifffe in Northumberland and Hutton in Berwickshire, five miles upstream from Berwick on Tweed. It was built in 1820 by an engineer who lived in Eyemouth, named Captain Samuel Brown. Designed using innovative engineering techniques for the time, the Bridge is locally loved […]

For centuries, salmon fishing on the River Tweed shaped local life and livelihoods. Although net fishing ended in the 1980s, one historic tradition continues each year at Norham. Since Victorian times, the Vicar of Norham has offered prayers at Pedwell Landing at the start of the salmon fishing season, asking for a blessing on the […]

It’s been 10 years since my favourite immersive Tweed experience. Every year I explore a new Scottish waterway with a fellow adventurer and for 2016 it was the year of the Tweed. Paddling from Innerleithen to Norham over three days was unforgettable. Full of wildlife, and stunning historic buildings and bridges, there was a steady […]