Fisherfolk & flying geese

Blue skies and sunshine for today’s walk with my ex-colleague, Phil, from Prestonpans to Edinburgh. A ropey start with a closed-off route and a need to divert to the post office with an urgent parcel, but then we were off out of Prestonpans and along the coast to join route 76 around Musselburgh lagoons. Spotted my first skein of geese flying overhead, a raft of eider ducks out on the water, and then oystercatchers, curlews and goosanders all along the coast. Sustrans’ artwork survey was on my list of things to volunteer to do today – we are asking volunteers to walk or cycle sections of National Cycle Network and let us know about any artworks they find. Gardner Molloy’s Fisherrow Fishermen are just off route 76 here, where they stand looking out to sea, representing the fishing heritage of the area and conveniently acting as bollards for the promenade. Since I last saw them, one of them has been gifted shells, pennies and treats into his lap. The rest of the walk was familiar territory – Brunstane Burn Path, then meeting route 1 through Magdalene Glen and along the Innocent Cycle Path, where we filled a #2minutecleanup bag with litter, before auto-piloting to follow the NCN instead of the John Muir Way for a short section (oops). A quick correction to approach the Meadows from another angle, over through Bruntsfield and down to the Union Canal for a sunny lunch sitting on the towpath at the Lift Bridge. Phil was my colleague and boss for many years, leaving Sustrans in 2021 when we were all still largely working from home because of Covid, so it was good to catch up in person and talk through old times at work, families, getting older and our shared interest in natural history and biodiversity.