The Path Ahead – Holyrood Park Landscape Print

Description

On my second visit to Edinburgh, I arrived early in the morning and although the hotel would hold my bags I couldn’t check in until afternoon. I hadn’t slept for 24 hours but the weather was incredibly beautiful so in a moment of questionable sanity, I decided I was going to make the hike up Arthur’s Seat in Holyrood Park, which is part of the amazing landscape pictured here.

Arthur’s seat is the craggy remains of an ancient volcano. You can see the distinctive columnar rocks known as Samson’s Ribs on the left hand side of this print.

Although I was very tired when I set off for Holyrood Park, I’m so glad I took the meandering path to the top of Arthur’s Seat, there were many great views of the city and unique and beautiful Scottish landscape, as seen here.

I took several photos of the landscape at this spot on the trail. The early morning light was really special. That sunlight cast a great gold glow across the land below. Instead of the midst of a city, it looks like some primordial earth far from human occupation.  Of all the pictures I took here, this print is my favorite, with a couple silhouetted in the golden light while stopping on their way up Arthur’s Seat to admire the view.

These people provide an anchor the scene, they put the landscape of Holyrood Park into perspective and they bring their own life to this picture. I expected my favorite views to be of the city of Edinburgh unfolding below from the top of Arthur’s Seat, but this pause for the view only a short way up is my personal favorite photo from my hike in Holyrood Park.

Note: Holyrood Park is listed with Historic Scotland owing to not only modern history but prehistoric occupation of this ancient landscape.