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Leith Water Walk in Edinburgh

Greetings,

Does anyone have any experiences or recommendations for walking along the Leith Water Walking path in Edinburgh? Are there any sections that are unsafe? Is it worth doing?

Thanks in advance for any comments.

Posted by
5835 posts

My only advice is don't fall in. Don't fall into the Water of Leith as it seemed to be somewhat stagnant during our May visit some years ago.

Actually I'm not sure of where the "Leith Water Walking Path" is but we did walk from New Town Edinburgh to Leith harbor area for dinner with part of our walking route being a pedestrian path along the banks of the Water of Leith. We walked to the restaurant (I think it may have been The Shore Restaurant) late afternoon/early evening and felt very safe. We even stopped at what appeared to be a local pub outside the Edinburgh tourist area as a diversion on our way to dinner. We did take the bus back to New Town so I can't comment on the after dark aspect of the walking route.

Is it worth doing? We had a nice dinner in Leith and the walk to Leith was pleasant but not the Royal Mile.

Posted by
2639 posts

http://www.waterofleith.org.uk/
I have done the walk many times sometimes long sections sometime just a few miles.there are lots of entrance and exit points along the lenth so you can join and leave it in lots of places,they all connect up with public transport so all very easy.it is perfectly safe and a nice gentle walk.There are a few places you have to cross main roads and you might have to check where the access points are but they are pretty obvious the only one that may throw you would be the one at Roseburn but there are markers.
You could start at the Visitors centre at Slateford and walk to Stockbridge which is about 6 or 7 miles, nice walk and takes you through some lovely parts of the city.
Buses go right to the Visitors centre from the city centre and from Stockbridge it is easy to get back to the city centre either by walking or a short bus ride. loads of great places for food and refreshments in Stockbridge.

Posted by
5678 posts

Listen to Unclegus. I've done this walk and it's lovely. You won't fall in. I saw a bit of Dean's Village as well and went to the art gallery. It's a great little walk. And you can easily slide off of it and back into the city. Do check out the website.

Edgar, the Leith Water Walk is very different from the Royal Mile, it's more remote and part of a conservation effort.