Summer, what summer. There hasn’t been one The rain, the wind, the chill and the cloud When will it ever end All summer long we wait, more in hope now than expectation Scottish kids go back to school, no sun; robbed of their regular summer glow And yet… and yet…..these last few days… The grandkids […]

I remember walking along the Tweed in Innerleithen in June 1986 with my family. I was trying to catch little tiddlers by the edge of the water in my flimsy yellow net. I managed to catch one which my brother helped me land! However, he promptly fell in the water and I lost the fish […]

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 […]

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 […]

After visiting my daughter and her family between Christmas and New Year I was travelling home through the Tweed valley between Coldstream and Kelso. Late afternoon and a clear sky. Amid the seasonal hurly burly this view was, in every sense, a breath of fresh air.

In 1964 the Inspector and Chemist of the Tweed River Purification Board issued one of his regular reports, with details about water abstractions and pollution incidents. Examples include: • There were many complaints about the dumping of soot and a letter was sent to all chimney sweeps in the Borders about proper disposal arrangements. • […]