Arthur's Seat - views from near and far

These images may also feature in other parts of the site, e.g. views featuring Arthur's Seat taken from Aberlady Bay will also appear in the East Lothian pages.

New page December 2009 Views over the mist on Arthur's Seat
Also Views from Arthur's Seat pages one and two plus Views from Salisbury Crags
Home page - or go to Edinburgh Geological Society website

	Crags View 00 1152 x 864 114K	Photographed from the esplanade of Edinburgh Castle.
	Crags 519 x 768 146K	Previously featured as a scan of a print, now presented here as a scan of the original negative. Photographed on Infrared film using a 24mm wide angle lens.
	St Leonard's 2005c 813 x 1024 300K	Taken about 30 years apart, this and the previous photo complement each other inasmuch as each of them views the other's viewpoint. At the top right of this picture can be seen where the cobbled road was, now hidden by trees except for the top of the stairs. The road below is Queen's Drive.
	Blackford Hill & Arthur's Seat 1024 x 768 128K	Above the woods of Blackford Glen stands The Royal Observatory, behind which is Arthur's Seat.
	Links 2 1024 x 768 119K	I've zoomed in a bit closer in this shot, almost excluding the George Square university buildings on the left of the picture above. Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat dominate the skyline, with Bruntsfield Links in the foreground.
	Links 4 1024 x 768 101K	A similar view to Crags 2 but with the camera panned right, showing Arthur's Seat.
	Crags 1024 x 768 121K	As seen from the top of Blackford Hill. On the left are the twin cranes which will build the new Holyrood Parliament, aka Donald's Dome.
	Crags 1024 x 768 121K	Same viewpoint but with the camera panned slightly to the right. Nikon Coolpix 900 digital camera with telephoto adapter.
	Arthur's Seat, Salisbury Crags & Calton Road 517 x 768 94K	Taken using Infra Red film. Photographed from Regent Road near the top of the steps known as Jacob's Ladder. Calton Road is down below and Arthur's Seat and Salisbury Crags are in the distance, behind some smoky chimneys near the bottom of the Royal Mile.
	Edinburgh view 1024 x 768 122K	The familiar silhouette of Arthur's Seat and Edinburgh Castle is visible on the horizon as seen from Aberlady Bay on a winter morning.
	Aberlady Ed view 1152 x 864 220K	A beautiful, desolate landscape, just begging to be photographed. If you walk from the wooden foot-bridge near the nature reserve carpark, then this is your first good look at the seashore and the view beyond, across Aberlady Bay towards the Pentland Hills and Arthur's Seat.
	Aberlady Ed view 01 1152 x 864 215K	Further east along the shore is this similar view, but with the foreground dramatically changed. Fine dry sand is being blown across damp sand. The camera is zoomed in slightly to reveal more of the Pentland Hills, Arthur's Seat and Edinburgh. This is my personal favourite...
	EL Ed view 1152 x 864 108K	Further east still, nearer Yellowcraigs. The sky is looking quite dramatic with heavy clouds looming across. The hills to the south of Edinburgh are illuminated by shafts of faint sunshine. The distinctive profile of Arthur's Seat is plainly visible, as is Edinburgh Castle. The sea's surface is whipped up by the wind.
	Aberlady Bay (March 2002) 1152 x 864 151K	Sunnier weather. The tide is out exposing lots of sandy beach. Beyond the breakwater, on the left horizon, the familiar outline of the Pentland Hills and Arthur's Seat can be seen.
	Duddingston 00 1024 x 768 146K	Duddingston Loch photographed from the Queen's Drive, the road which circles Arthur's Seat. Duddingston Village is just visible at the far left.
	Figgate Pond 1024 x 768 144K	Just west of the junction of the Sir Harry Lauder Road and Baileyfield Road at Portobello is Figgate Burn Park and its pond. Arthur's Seat is in the background to the west.
	St Margaret's Loch 1024 x 768 223K	Bright November sunshine throws the surface of Arthur's Seat into relief in this shot looking down onto the loch.
	Crags 519 x 768 146K	An S bend in Queen's Drive in Holyrood park. Photographed from Nether Hill, known as the Lion's Haunch of Arthur's Seat.
	Haggis Knowe 1024 x 768 156	...is the hill to the left of this footpath which leads up Arthur's Seat from St Margaret's Well near Holyrood Palace.
	Haggis Knowe 1152 x 864 334K	This is Haggis Knowe itself. Knowe means, of course, a small hill. Presumably it's called Haggis because the famed creature had been seen here. It has shorter legs on one side of its body so it can more easily run round the contours catching its prey.
	Arthur's Seat from Whinny Hill 1024 x 768 116K	A less frequently seen view of the Lion's Head part of Arthur's Seat.
	Hunter's Bog 1152 x 864 283K	Countless paths cross this area of Arthur's Seat which is becoming ever more popular amongst visitors and locals. Many of the footpaths further up the hill have been repaired to counter erosion.
	St Leonard's Police Station 1152 x 864 303K	Both the police station and Salisbury Crags which tower overhead feature in Ian Rankin's Inspector Rebus books. This is the view along Rankeillor Street from Clerk Street. On the Radical Road footpath below the cliffs, a person clad in white is just visible.
	East Crosscauseway 1152 x 864 260K	One street further north towards the city centre, and Salisbury Crags still dominate the background. This is the view from Nicolson Street. The top of Arthur's Seat is just visible, as are one or two people who have climbed up the 251 Metre (822 Feet) hill.
	Hope Park Terrace 1152 x 802 164K	If you travel east through The Meadows along Melville Drive then this is the view which greets you at the end. Bernard Terrace lies ahead, connecting Clerk Street to St Leonard's. Towering overhead is Arthur's Seat. One or two people can be seen at its summit, sometimes called The Lion's Head.
	Arthur's Seat 19 1152 x 864 218K	A classic view of the crags from the part of Arthur's Seat called Nether Hill (aka the Lion's Haunch). This geological oddity has been modelled on Edinburgh University computers. Periodically they ask for volunteers to enter virtual reality to explore it. The footpath along the foot of the crags is the Radical Road, reconstructed at the suggestion of Walter Scott as a way of creating jobs..
	Arthur's Seat 23 1152 x 864 269K	From higher up on Arthur's Seat is this view of Edinburgh Castle and the Old Town. Salisbury Crags dominate the foreground and the winter sunshine clearly shows the footpaths along the clifftop. There is no fence.
	Arthur's Seat 26 1152 x 864 67K	Taken into the light, this shot is almost a silhouette. Several people have chosen this vantage point at the south east end of the crags to admire the view. Blackford Hill, Braid Hill and the Pentland Hills recede into the distance.
	Arthur's Seat 1024 x 768 121K	This photo and the next are taken from the same vantage point as the one above. The dome of Edinburgh University's Old College is on the left, in front of Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat.
	from Corstorphine 1152 x 864 197K	Edinburgh Castle, Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat as seen from Corstorphine Hill.
	North Bridge 1152 x 864 208K	The southern end of the bridge spans Market Street below, then passes to the left of the Scotsman building. Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat stand behind in the winter sunshine.
	Kirkcaldy 1024 x 768 62K	Taken from the top of the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh and Arthur's Seat are in the shade, but across the Firth of Forth, Kirkcaldy is in the sunshine.
	Forth View 1024 x 768 75K	A gloomy, dreich day in Edinburgh. Further north however, behind Arthur's Seat and the Firth of Forth, the sun shines brightly on the Kingdom of Fife.
	Crags from Arthur's Seat 1024 x 768 195K	A telephoto view of part of the crags thrown into sharp relief by the November 2000 sunshine. Parts of Radical Road and Queen's Drive are visible.
	Calton Hill Mist 1152 x 864 135.7K	Nelson's Monument stands totally alone in a sea of cloud. Calton Hill, Leith and the Firth of Forth are submersed in fog. The sun shines down on the grass on top of Salisbury Crags. On the far horizon the tops of some hills in Fife are just visible.
	Crags View 08 1152 x 864 105.1K	Far below, the Dumbiedykes district is partially obscured by the mist. Further away Edinburgh Castle and Corstorphine Hill are poking through into the sunshine.
	Crags View 10 1152 x 864 57K	Twin cranes poke up through the mist, but the Dynamic Earth building lurks in the shade, looking more like a sea-cucumber than an armadillo. The nascent Scottish Parliament building is invisible.
	Crags View 11 1152 x 864 62.3K	A similar image to the previous one, but with a slightly wider field of view. Here we can see the sun shining down on the mist, as well as a glimpse of a Fife hill-top several miles away across the Firth of Forth.
	Crags View 15 1152 x 864 125.4K	In this shot the sunny foreground contrasts with the mysterious gloom far below.
	Crags View 20 1152 x 864 51.1K	This was a very odd experience. The sun is casting a shadow of Salisbury Crags onto the layer of mist below. Our two shadows are also visible because we were standing on the edge of the cliff. Moray House College of Education is barely visible but a reflective road sign catches the sun's rays and shines brightly through the gloom.
	Crags View 23 1152 x 864 41.6K	Looking down onto the 'armadillo' building and the new roundabout on Queen's Drive, adjacent to the new Scotsman newspaper premises. The Parliament building is barely perceptible.
	Crags View 25 1152 x 864 124.4K	The sun shines on Edinburgh Castle and the Royal Mile area while mist continues to ebb and flow around Dumbiedykes and Holyrood Road.
	Crags View 26 1152 x 864 62.8K	This view looks like some mysterious undersea scene but it's only the Dynamic Earth building and one or two trees.
	Bonaly Res 7 1024 x 768 161K	New century, higher up and a sunnier day. Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat can be seen round the side of Capelaw Hill.
	Lion's Head 1152 x 864 282K	A summer's day on the summit of Arthur's Seat. About a dozen people can be seen on the skyline on this Monday morning in June 2003.
	Arthur's Seat 29 New Path 1152 x 864 515K	Lots of detail in this long-lens shot of the new zig-zag footpath up Arthur's Seat to the right of the eroded Gutted Haddie.
	Arthur's Seat 28 New Path 648 x 864 309K	This vertical shot shows more of the zig-zag path and the badly-eroded Gutted Haddie on its left. Go to top of page
	Arthur's Seat 65 path 1152 x 864 352K	This shot taken for comparison with the 2 pictures above. They were photographed in June 2003, this one 2 years later.
	Arthur's Seat 35 New Path 1152 x 864 274K	Looking down onto the new path with Queen's Drive visible below Nether Hill. Two women are plodding up the steps. Meanwhile, the ubiquitous golfers are golfing. Golf, of course, is a game played with a stick with a ball at one end and a dick at the other.
	St Leonard's Police Station 1152 x 864 303K	Both the police station and Salisbury Crags which tower overhead feature in Ian Rankin's Inspector Rebus books. This is the view along Rankeillor Street from Clerk Street. On the Radical Road footpath below the cliffs, a person clad in white is just visible.
	East Crosscauseway 1152 x 864 260K	One street further north towards the city centre, and Salisbury Crags still dominate the background. This is the view from Nicolson Street. The top of Arthur's Seat is just visible, as are one or two people who have climbed up the 251 Metre (822 Feet) hill.
	Hope Park Terrace 1152 x 802 164K	If you travel east through The Meadows along Melville Drive then this is the view which greets you at the end. Bernard Terrace lies ahead, connecting Clerk Street to St Leonard's. Towering overhead is Arthur's Seat. One or two people can be seen at its summit, sometimes called The Lion's Head.
	St Leonard's 1152 x 864 228K	This building was converted from the former James Clerk's High School into houses. The ESB presumably stands for Edinburgh School Board.
	Arthur's Seat Summit 1152 x 864 190K	Photographed from Whinny Hill. The top of Arthur's Seat has its usual complement of visitors, admiring the view from 251m (822 feet) above sea level.
	Crags 0310 1152 x 864 376K	The October sun is still low in the sky at noon and glances across the sloping top of Salisbury Crags, picking out the detail of the footpaths. Three walkers can be seen on the left of the picture. The footpath following the bottom of the crags is the Radical Road. Down below is the Queen's Drive - the road through Holyrood Park.
	Crags 0310a 1152 x 864 380K	Two minutes later and I've aimed the camera a little higher, following the three walkers as they continue towards the top of the crags and the best view over the city. Most people's natural fear of heights keeps them from straying too near to the edge.
	Crags 0310b 1152 x 864 300K	After descending the zig-zag path, I've taken the path along the top of the crags. This picture shows a walker coming down the slope towards me.
	Crags 0310c 1152 x 864 239K	This shows a cliff-edge walker with the city and the Firth of Forth down below.
	Queen's Drive 0310 1152 x 864 368K	The road through Holyrood Park called Queen's Drive runs along the bottom of the picture. Compare the trees with two similar pictures on page 3.
	Radical Road 04 648 x 864 231K	Looking down from the top of Salisbury Crags onto the Radical Road. Two walkers admire the view over the city.
	Radical Road 5 1152 x 864 209K	Photographed from Arthur's Seat with the Olympus E-10's 420mm equivalent lens. A couple stroll along the Radical Road. To the right, out of view, are the crags. Behind the steep slope on the left can be seen part of central Edinburgh's skyline including the Scott Monument.
	Radical Road 9 1152 x 864 211K	Looking south east along the Radical Road footpath at the bottom of Salisbury Crags. The buildings down below at the right are student accomodation at Pollock Halls.
	Bruntsfield Place, Salisbury Crags 1152 x 864 334K	Salisbury Crags and part of Arthur's Seat. Parallel to the main road is Bruntsfield Gardens which connects to Forbes Road, further east.
	David Hume Tower Salisbury Crags 1152 x 864 251K	David Hume (1711-1776) might be turning in his grave if he knew about the ugly building which bears his name. Its companion the Appleton Tower is no better. The white box-like University Library building on the left also borders the once elegant George Square. Part of Warrender Park Road is visible in the foreground. A lone person standing on top of Salisbury Crags gives a sense of scale.
	Arthur's Seat 1152 x 864 293K	Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat. A much wider view than the David Hume Tower shot on page 2, showing the rooves of Bruntsfield Place, Bruntsfield Gardens and Forbes Road in the foreground.
	View 1 1024 x 768 131K	Two people are approaching the top of Salisbury Crags in this picture. The Forth Bridges are just visible behind Corstorphine Hill.
	View 2 1024 x 768 129K	A good view over the Firth of Forth to Fife, and a good place to bring children - as long as you don't let them fall over the cliff...
	North Bridge 1152 x 864 208K	The southern end of the bridge spans Market Street below, then passes to the left of the Scotsman building. Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat stand behind in the winter sunshine.
	Arthur's Seat 44 1152 x 864 359K	The main path up Arthur's Seat as seen from the southern end of the crags. The eroded area known as the Gutted Haddie may eventually become covered again, now that there's a footpath.
	Crags View 31 1152 x 864 335K	The first of two pictures taken from the same spot as the one above, but facing the opposite direction, looking towards Edinburgh Castle. I was attracted by the colourful but sparse vegetation on the cliff edge, and was able to emphasise this because the middle distance was in the shadow of a cloud.
	Crags View 32 1152 x 864 295K	In this shot I zoomed in to have a closer look at the flowers and the reduced depth-of-field blurred the the distance.
	Salisbury Crags 2004 December 1152 x 864 348K	The sun is low on the horizon in December and is at just the right angle to reveal the detail on Salisbury Crags' sloping plateau. The city is spread out beneath. Both Forth bridges can be seen in the distance to the west.
	Radical Road 15 768 x 1024 283K	A stroll round the Radical Road is a pleasant walk at any time of year. Breathtaking views of the city and the surrounding countryside can be had. The path's northern end is near Holyrood Palace and the southern end is about 600m from the Commonwealth Swimming Pool. top of page
	Radical Road & Crags View 45 768 x 1024 299K	This shot shows more of the crags with a slightly different view of the city. The black shape of the Walter Scott Monument in East Princes Street Gardens can be seen just left of centre, with Fettes College behind the trees of Inverleith Park. It was Walter Scott who suggested building the Radical Road as a job creation exercise to relieve unemployment.
	Crags View 46 Edinburgh Castle 1152 x 864 196K	The castle lies in the distance on the left. The cliff edge is unfenced - people's natural fear of heights prevents most accidents. Good walking boots are advised, especially near the south end.
	Summit 59 1280 x 1024 369K	Approaching from Whinny Hill on the north east side of Arthur's Seat.
	Summit 57 1152 x 864 232K	This zoomed-in shot shows more detail of the summit and the people enjoying the spectacular views.
	Summit 78 1280 x 881 145K	A long lens shot from nearby Nether Hill shows crowds in front of billowing clouds.
	Crags Slope 1152 x 864 235K	In the summer, on the sloping plateau behind Salisbury Crags, can be heard skylarks - those amazing little birds that hover and sing at the same time. Their songs feature amazing improvisations and spectacular riffs. On the horizon, a few walkers are carefully following the clifftop path.
	Dunsapie Loch 1152 x 864 368K	Holyrood Park has three lochs: Duddingston, St Margaret's and Dunsapie which is quite high up the hill. This view looks north-east over the loch to Portobello and the Firth of Forth.
	Nether Hill Arthur's seat Summit 1152 x 864 315K	The actual summit is just out of shot to the right; this picture is the view from Nether Hill. The rough ground is well trodden and the texture is emphasized by the oblique winter sunshine. Edinburgh Castle can be seen in the distance.
	Arthur's Seat from Melville Drive 1152 x 864 250K	Melville Drive comes to an end at the junction with Hope Park and Summerhall. The road continues as Hope Park Terrace and Bernard Terrace, leading closer to Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat, towering overhead in the morning haze. The road is closed for the Say No to Poverty march.
	Crags 0604a 1152 x 766 164K	The walkers on the crags and the Radical Road give a sense of scale.
	Crags 0604b 1152 x 766 200K	A similar view with the camera panned slightly to the right.
	Crags 0604c 1152 x 766 171K	The summit of Arthur's Seat is visible here, high above Salisbury Crags. Six or seven people are on top of the hill, 251m (822ft ) above sea level.
	Arthur's Seat 68 InfraRed 1280 x 851 320K	The steps are part of the footpath from Holyrood Park Road. These monochrome pictures were taken on a digital camera using a Hoya R72 infrared filter which blocks visible light up to 650nm. (Nothing is visible through the camera's viewfinder.)
	Radical Road 20 InfraRed 1280 x 851 370K	This view is at the south end of Radical Road. To compose infrared shots it's best to do so on a tripod before attaching an R72 filter. Handheld shots will be hit or miss even with wide angle lenses, almost impossible with telephoto ones.
	Radical Road 21 InfraRed 1280 x 851 306K	This is also at the south end of Radical Road but facing back towards the start of the walk from the Queen's Drive road.
	Roundabouts InfraRed 1280 x 831 290K	Twin roundabouts connect Queen's Drive (foreground) and Holyrood Park Road. It's obvious from these photos that plants reflect more infrared light than inanimate surfaces.
	Arthur's Seat in the mist 1280 x 851 186K	8:40am and the sun is burning off the mist obscuring Edinburgh.
	Arthur's Seat 82 Nether Hill 1280 x 854 287K	Arthur's Seat has been likened to a lion with the summit hill being the Lion's Head. Nether Hill would be the lion's back as it's slightly lower and broader and rounded. This morning's mist conceals the views and focuses attention on these lines of stones.
	Arthur's Seat 83 Nether Hill 1280 x 854 77K	This second picture shows a wider view including the sun. I don't know the meaning or function of these lines of rocks. If you do then I'd be interested in any references. I did try Google.
	KP0902b 1220 x 1024 342K	Zooming in on Arthur's Seat shows various footpaths up the hill, clearly outlined in the snow. The horizontal line is part of Queens Drive, the road which circumnavigates the hill.
	KP0902f 1280 x 1005 229K	Two of the very tall lamp posts dominate this picture. The nearest one shows an inspection cover, possibly big enough for a person to enter. The more distant lamp post shows the tapered pole with its ten lamps. The poles sway visibly in the wind. Arthur's Seat is visible in the background.
	Edinburgh Fort SouthWest 03 1152 x 864 277K	The ruts worn into the mining waste will have been made by male adolescents on motor bikes. It would be nice if the area was landscaped and turned into a park that families could use.
	Niddrie 17b 1280 x 903 266K	The distinctive shape of Arthur's Seat shows that this is indeed Edinburgh. Nether Hill (on the right) is where the views of Niddrie were taken from on Edinburgh East page 1.
	Arthur's Seat 84a 1280 x 854 245K	A short sequence of photos taken in late May 2009 starting with the view from the north side near Royal Park Terrace.
	Haggis Knowe 2 1280 x 854 450K	Haggis Knowe is the small rocky outcrop picture here. It's just to the left of the valley pictured above called Hunters Bog.
	Radical Road 27 1280 x 854 326K	From the same viewpoint, turning the camera round to the south west give this view up the Radical Road. It's quite a steep climb starting from this end beside Holyrood Palace. If you're going to walk along the top of Salisbury Crags you'd be safer wearing proper boots...
	Arthur's Seat 84b 1280 x 854 372K	People are visible at the summit and about 2/3 of the way up as well as the three walkers who have just descended one of the many paths.
	Arthur's Seat 84c 1280 x 854 397K	The path to the right leads into Hunters Bog.
	Hunters Bog 22 1280 x 854 342K	The path through Hunters Bog is a pleasant city centre shortcut from Abbeyhill to Newington. The little pond and surrounding boggy area encourages a diversity of wildlife.
	Hunters Bog 23 1280 x 854 251K	A closer look towards the pond and the western slopes of Arthur's Seat. A small group of people are on the path at the other side of the valley bottom.
	Hunters Bog 24 1280 x 854 363K	This path is less steep than the grassy one to its left. At the top there are good views over the south side of the city to the Pentland Hills.
	Arthur's Seat from Seafield 01 1280 x 817 246K	A long lens view to Arthur's Seat looking over the houses at Abercorn and Willowbrae and the patchy slopes of Whinny Hill.
	Arthur's Seat from Seafield 02 1280 x 854 211K	Zoomed in a little more on the patches of gorse on Whinny Hill. On Arthur's Seat there's a few climbers on the summit and coming back down. They're only a few pixels high in this shot but they stand out silhouetted against the horizon.
	Queens Drive 0909 1250 x 837 408K	A sunny September Saturday, ideal for a stroll round Queens Drive or one of the numerous paths.
	Crags 0909 1280 x 854 394K	Taken from the rough path (boots advised) along the top of Salisbury Crags. A lone figure sits on the cliff edge to take in the view. Down below, three walkers start along the Radical Road.
	Hunters Bog 26 1280 x 943 459K	Looking down on the main path through Hunters Bog from the top of Salisbury Crags.
	Crags View 60 1280x 854 332K	Two fire engines were parked nearby, apparently so rescuers could practice on Haggis Knowe.
	Arthur's Seat from Allermuir 1680 x 1050 263K	A long lens view (~180mm) of Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat. Allermuir is the highest Pentland Hill overlooking Edinburgh. Fife lies across the Firth of Forth.
	Arthur's Seat 1280 x 850 331K	From Blackford Hill. Visitors swarm over the city centre volcano like ants.
	Crags gorse fire 1280 x 851 368K	It wasn't especially hot or dry but because of the steep slopes, gorse fires spread rapidly upwards. August 2010.
	from Liberton Hospital 1280 x 727 260K	The view to Arthur's Seat from Liberton Hospital.
	Crags Path IR 1280 x 923 364K	An infra red view of the path up the top of Salisbury Crags, ascending from the Holyrood end. A sunny day at the end of August 2010.
	Arthur's Seat 89 1280 x 850 500K	Looking at the easier path up Arthur's Seat as seen from the crags.

New page December 2009 Views over the mist on Arthur's Seat
Also Views from Arthur's Seat pages one and two plus Views from Salisbury Crags

or back to Edinburgh South or go to the top of page