UNION CANAL WALK, RATHO

Ratho is a village in the outskirts west of Edinburgh, Scotland. Its population at the 2011 census was 1,634 based on the 2010 definition of the locality. It was formerly in the old county of Midlothian. The small village is a conservation village and it’s one pub, the Bridge Inn which sits right on the Union Canal is a great spot to lunch or have dinner. You can even have your dinner on one of the barges while slowly cruising down the Union Canal.

The Union Canal is a canal in Scotland, running from Falkirk to Edinburgh, constructed to bring minerals, especially coal, to the capital. It was opened in 1822 and was initially successful, but the construction of railways, particularly the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway, opened in 1842, diminished its value as a transport medium. It fell into slow commercial decline and was closed to commercial traffic in 1933. It was officially closed in 1965. The canal is listed as three individual Scheduled monuments by Historic Scotland according to the three former counties, Midlothian, West Lothian and Stirlingshire, through which it flows.

There is a path running alongside the Union Canal so it is a great walk on a nice day and then finish up at the Bridge Inn for some drinks and lunch.

See full article and photos here : https://highlanderimagesphotography.com/2017/08/28/union-canal-walk-ratho/