Colinton Dell: the wooded gorge and the Stevenson tunnel
A river gorge, an old railway path, a tunnel painted end to end, and Stevenson's village. This is a Claude-drafted route awaiting the editor's walk.

1. Colinton village and the manse
Start in the old village where Robert Louis Stevenson spent boyhood summers — his grandfather was the minister and the manse still stands by the kirk. A statue of the young Stevenson with his dog sits near the church. Get your bearings, then drop to the river.

2. Water of Leith and the weir
Down in the dell (the wooded ravine), the Water of Leith runs fast over a weir that once drove the valley's mills. The path hugs the water; herons work the shallows. Cool and green even in high summer.

3. The Colinton Tunnel
The old Balerno branch railway tunnel, 140 metres of it, now painted end to end with a community mural — a poem of Stevenson's looping through the imagery, lit so the colours hold in the dark. Walk it slowly; this is the one to come for.

4. Redhall Walled Garden
A short way on, a restored walled garden run as a quiet horticultural project. You don't have to go in, but the gate is usually open and the espaliered fruit on the old brick is worth two minutes.

5. Kate's Mill and the dell ruins
The path passes the stubs of old mills — Colinton Dell ground grain, paper and snuff for centuries. Kate's Mill's ruined walls are half-swallowed by the trees now. Read the slope and you can still see where the lade carried the water.

6. Slateford aqueduct
Land where the Union Canal crosses the valley on Telford's eight-arched aqueduct, the river and the railway path passing beneath. Climb up to the towpath; bus 44 from Slateford Road takes you back into town.

Colinton Dell: the wooded gorge and the Stevenson tunnel