Roseburn to Stockbridge along the Water of Leith

It's World Rivers Day today, so what better than to share photos from yesterday's walk along the Water of Leith from Roseburn to Stockbridge. This is a pretty, wooded stretch of the walkway. Here are some photos

harts tongue fern, showing clearly the spores lined up on the underside of the fronds

this part of the walkway is closed off as there's been a major landslide and the hillside and path are very unstable (most people ignore the fact that it's closed off however and clamber over the fencing).

I love seeing ferns hidden away in the cracks of stone walls - this is a young harts tongue and maidenhair spleenwort (the one with divided fronds).

here's a woodlouse emerging from its old exoskeleton, not something you see very often!

We'd forgotten it was Doors Open Day, but were very glad it was when we got to St Bernard's Well! We got the chance to get very close to Hygeia (the Greek Goddess of health - who gave her name to hygiene). For photos of the inside of the well, please visit my Shapeshifting Green blog!

Here's a view from the foot of Hygeia, looking out over the river

After we had left the well, we continued out walk along the path in the photo above. Just before we got to Stockbridge (our destination for lunch) we can across this wonderful patch of ivy

It was alive with hoverflies and a few wasps and bees! There were hundreds of Syrphus sp hoverflies

hundreds of Eristalis hoverflies

and a few Myathropa florea hoverflies

I've never seen so many hoverflies in one place before!

We saw two wasp attacks on hoverflies (thanks to Crafty Green Boyfriend for this photo!)

which gave quite a dramatic ending to our walk!