Roslin Rustie Ramble

There is a new(ish) walking trail in Roslin Village called the Roslin Rustie Walk, and I’ve finally found (almost) all of the rusties, so I thought I’d share them here.

The rusties are metal sculptures scattered around the village as part of a nature walk. They can be found along the edge of the Roslin Moat path, on fenceposts and planters in the village, around the Rosslyn Bowling Club, in the village park, and tucked away in little pocket parks or grass verges. Some are quite hidden and hard to see through the foliage whilst others of right there, waiting to be spotted.

There are sheep and ducks and birds and snails and fairies and hearts and more all hidden around the village. Each one bringing a bit of whimsy to their environment.

It took me two walks to find all of them, although I also found a couple on two random visits to the village, including one spotted by the old curling ponds which I never would have found based on the available map. But I saw a “hint” on the Roslin Rustie Walk Facebook page so popped by to see it after a (routine) visit to the GP’s office.

It was two walks because I followed the map a little too literally on the first walk. Once I made a full loop, I realised that I would need to think of the map as a broad guide with a wide margin of error. But by then I was too hungry to search again, so decided to complete the walk another day.

Today was my second (full) search which I did with a friend. We started on the path along the Moat and worked our way to the bowling club before heading into the village (with a stop to check on last weekend’s planting project) then into the park. Then it was back through the moat for the last rustie* at the curling pond, which isn’t on the map.

The second walk was a rambling 7 miles, although that included the walk from my cottage to/from the moat (2.5 miles total) and a little bit of back-tracking during the walk. I think that you could easily do the whole walk in 4 miles (or less) if you know where all the rusties are and you don’t backtrack to get to them.

I know that one of the rusties was added last week, so I would not be surprised if more rusties are popping up here and there. Also, one of the rusties seems to be missing from the photos I’ve seen, so I don’t know if it’s been moved or stolen. But I’ll add that (and any others I’ve missed) when I find them.

My photos are below, in a slightly random order but grouped to some extent. You can find out more about the Roslin Rusties Walk on their Facebook page. You can also view the map or enjoy a virtual walk in this little music video.

* My friend and I are in disagreement with the rusties at the curling pond. I say they are herons, as the artist calls them that. My friend insists (clearly, wrongly) that they are storks. Please feel free to share your views on the fact that they are herons in the comments.