At each of the four corners of the gallery are tall windows, purposefully framing views towards the four hills surrounding Galashiels: Meigle Hill, Gala Hill, Buckholm Hill and Blaikies Hill. Head on these walks near Galashiels with me as we step beyond the gallery and explore some of the stories of the landscapes you can see from the Tapestry.
Hello! I’m Angela Crow, co-founder of Hike & Bike Hub, a volunteer-led social enterprise promoting walking and cycling in Galashiels. We’re a short distance from the Tapestry. Simply follow the blue thread on the ground, cross Park Street and continue to Douglas Bridge. We’re on the right, overlooking the Gala Water; our river which once powered the textile mills around the town, flowing through the ingenious Mill Lade which still runs through the Cornmill Fountain today. We are also directly opposite the Transport Interchange and Railway Station, making us easily accessible for people travelling to Galashiels by train, bus, car, bike or foot.
But let me walk you back to those four hills and tell you a little more to guide you on your travels…
Meigle Hill: Galashiels’ Highest Hill Walk (423m)
Meigle Hill (to the west) is our largest hill rising to about 423 metres (1,388 ft) and it has woodland paths, open hillside, farm tracks, and some steeper climbs. It is 1metre taller than the highest of the more well-known Eildon Hills! This is a challenging hill to climb, but views from the top toward the Eildon Hills in Melrose and the Gala Water valley north towards Stow, are spectacular. Around the slopes are areas called the “Meigle Pots,” natural hollows where Covenanters are said to have held secret religious gatherings in the 17th century.
In what’s left of the woods near the communication masts lies Wallace’s Putting Stone, a large boulder left behind by a glacier, or as local rumour would have it, “put” (threw) there by Wiliam Wallace himself as a feat of strength while he travelled through the Borders during the Wars of Scottish Independence in the late 1200s and early 1300s. Today, Wallace’s Putting Stone is still a bit hidden, and many locals walk past without knowing it’s there. The atmosphere around the summit, especially in mist or snow, has helped preserve the myths around our highest hill.
Gala Hill: Woodland Trails, Poets Corner and Braw Lads Views
Gala Hill skirts the town and has many criss-crossing trails, with some routes across the hill playing a key role in the town’s annual Braw Lads Gathering, held in June every year. Gala Hill is 270m (902ft) high and is popular with walkers and cyclists. Here and there, you can still see fairy doors on the path leading from the edge of the town to the spur of the hill, to which some locals refer as Poets Corner. Why? Because of the stone dedicated to Roger Quin, a poet and busker originally from Dumfries but who later lived in Galashiels. Quin, also known as the Tramp Poet, penned the poem “Borderlands.” You can do as he did …”And gaze on Scotland’s Eden from the spur of Gala Hill” at the seat near his stone.
If you are looking for Abbotsford House, home of Sir Walter Scott, it is tucked away out of sight, across the River Tweed, from this viewpoint but you are looking in the right direction! For a different view, turn up Gala Hill and follow the fingerpost to the left to walk through a cool woodland with views back across the town towards the other two hills on the opposite side of the valley. As you exit this woodland area and cross the quiet country road, you will enter another wooded area, known as The Policies. “Policies” are defined as “the grounds of an estate” and this wooded area behind the Galashiels Academy and a link to the Southern Upland Way is no different. These woodlands once formed part of a larger estate, that of the now demolished New Gala House, owned by Hugh Scott, Laird of Galashiels, before they were purchased by the Local Authority in 1974. Old Gala House, the oldest building in Galashiels is still standing, with its beautiful gardens and hosting a museum well worth a visit.
Blaikie’s Hill: Discover a Cold War Bunker
Another area of woodland lies across the valley, behind the residential area known as Langlee. Langlee Community Woodland, planted by residents young and old in 1997, also has several trails to follows as it spreads across Blaikie’s Hill to the East of the Great Tapestry of Scotland. However, Blaikie’s Hill (which is 308m / 1017ft) also has a not-so-secret bunker to discover. It is one of more than 1500 underground observation posts used in the 1950s-1960s for monitoring nuclear weapon strikes during the Cold War years. Each bunker could accommodate four men, 12 feet below ground, with food and water supplies for one week. In the event of a nuclear strike the observers were to use simple instruments to estimate the direction and size of the bomb blast and report results by telephone to their Headquarters. Probably not a job to volunteer for, that one.
If you don’t fancy a trip to this bunker, you can cross from Blaikies Hill across the top of Ladhope Recreation Ground and north towards our final hill, which holds some ghostly stories.
Buckholm Hill: Ghost Stories, Dobie’s Grave and the Haunted Tower
As you walk over Buckholm Hill, there is the option to go straight on to try and find Dobie’s Grave. Reaching 224m (735ft) at its peak, this hill can be deceptive in points, and it certainly was too much of a challenge for one man. The story goes that, sometime around 1790, a man called Dobie accepted a bet to play his bagpipes whilst walking from Galashiels to Lauder, but he lost the bet when he collapsed and died. A pile of stones now marks his grave, and some people have apparently heard a faint tune from bagpipes…..it’s a better story than those linked to Buckholm Tower, a feature seen (but not accessible) from any walk on Buckholm Hill. According to local legend, this tower is haunted by the spirit of James Pringle, the 18th-century laird of Buckholm, a cruel and violent man. The stories include unsettling reports of ghostly noises emanating from its dungeon and an everlasting bloodstain on a beam where a murder was committed by Pringle. Haunted by the ghosts of the two men he murdered, Pringle became convinced that spectral hounds were hunting him. Every year on the anniversary of Pringle’s death, the sounds of baying hounds and heavy banging on the dungeon door can still apparently be heard from the depths of Buckholm Tower.
Although Buckholm Tower is closed to the public, Torwoodlee Tower on the opposite side of the valley is accessible to visitors. Built in 1601 to replace a tower destroyed by Elliots, Armstrongs and other ‘lawless clans’ in 1568, this has become a ruin and a scheduled ancient monument. Torwoodlee Estate has other secrets. The site of Torwoodlee Broch is believed to date back to an earlier Iron Age fort sometime in the 1st or 2nd century AD. More of our Iron Age history can be found at Trimontium Museum in Melrose.
Spend a Weekend in Galashiels & Beyond
There are many more places to discover in and around Galashiels, and more stories to learn about the history of the town, the Borders and across Scotland from the Great Tapestry of Scotland. If you would like to explore the hills and countryside around Galashiels, why not join us for our annual Galashiels Walking Festival held every April for the last 10 years, and hopefully for many more years to come. Local volunteer walk leaders will share their passion for the area and highlight some of the spots that might get missed without their local knowledge. And the chat on Festival walks is always good, whatever the weather!
Come and find out more for yourself, and if you do want to explore the beautiful countryside around Galashiels, please pop into Hike & Bike Hub before you go for we have local knowledge, directions, suggestions and stories to share. Discover a more extensive weekend itinerary here.