The Friends is a group of people who have joined together to help look after the Corstorphine Hill area, for the benefit of people, animals, plants and the landscape. We organise practical activities such as tidying-up and planting, improving paths and signs; we run guided walks and evening talks. Our longer-term aims include developing the old walled garden at Hillwood, and the old nursery at Beechhill, and raising funds for an education centre.

LATEST NEWS

Current newsletter: Newsletter No. 43, March 2012 (174kB pdf)

Eddie

As many of you are aware, Eddie Price lost his fight with prostate cancer on the 29th December. He was your chairman, and my Dad. It has been well documented recently of all the work Dad did for charities, including the Friends, in the eulogy Paul Edie did at the funeral, on Paul’s personal blog, and the tribute to him in the Edinburgh Evening News, but I wanted to do a more personal one.

It feels very strange writing this about him, as he was never a man who accepted praise very well, and normally my job was re-writing his part of the newsletter! I was Dad’s unofficial PA. Or should I say, one of the many…… I have lost count of the speeches, letters etc. that I have restructured and reworded, and the grant applications filled in for things that I would never have thought of. This is because Dad was a perfectionist and so passionate about all things related to the Hill. He was also stubborn and determined which is exactly what you need in a chairman out to achieve things for the Hill, less so for those of us close to him! Dad revered the Friends achievements, not because he wanted to say, “I’ve done that”, but so he could say, “look at the beautiful open space we have here, let’s enjoy it”.

Dad has left a huge hole in my Mum’s, my sister Joanne’s, my and the rest of the families lives, but also very big shoes to fill with the Friends of Corstorphine Hill. He had a charisma about him that meant we were all frequently roped into doing things that we had no inclination to be part of, but ultimately enjoyed! We are so lucky that we had someone with such drive and enthusiasm in our lives. I hope that the Friends group continue with this drive and enthusiasm so we can all continue to enjoy Corstorphine Hill the way Dad did, as none of us could ask for a better legacy than that.

Caroline Turnbull
(Nee Price)

Our Friend and Colleague

The committee of the Friends of Corstorphine Hill send their deepest sympathy to Margaret and the family. Eddie will be greatly missed for his knowledge and leadership. We will endeavour to do our best and take the Friends forward as he would have wished.

Fred Davies (Editor, Friends of Corstorphine Hill)

Annual General Meeting

The AGM will be held on Thursday 12th April 2012 at 7.30pm in the Capital Hotel, Clermiston Road, Edinburgh.

Spring Report from the Countryside Ranger Service

Corstorphine Hill is a special place at any time of year, but especially now when everything is on the cusp of bursting into life. Indeed, with the exceptionally mild winter this year we can see this process begin earlier than ever. One noticeable aspect of this is the non-native, invasive, Rubus species salmonberry, which is unbelievably in flower! This has not stopped our efforts to control its spread. We have had several volunteer groups working on the hill to hack it back and remove the root system – this is the start of this season’s concerted effort to control non-native, invasive plants present on the Hill.

The New Year storm had an impact on Corstorphine Hill and quite a few large, mature trees fell, the majority of these have now been cleared by CEC Forestry and smaller trees were cleared by the Countryside Ranger Service. Please let us know if we have missed any – contact information at the bottom.

The Friends of Corstorphine Hill were successful in applying for a Community Grant from the Central Scotland Green Network for £1000. This paid for three days of work from the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers, along with new tools and materials. The crux of the work was to maintain the path network, improving the ‘Rest and be Thankful’ area by installing a new interpretation panel and improve an area of woodland by planting native trees, protecting trees and removing sycamore trees.

Mountain biking and cycling has always taken place on Corstorphine Hill, even before the introduction of the Scottish Outdoor Access Code when cycling in the Local Nature Reserve was prohibited. Most people cycle on the Hill responsibly, taking care and consideration of other users. A small minority don’t. Mountain bike trails and features do appear and in some cases scar sensitive areas of the Hill. Blocking these routes and removing the features doesn’t work as new ones soon appear. The Countryside Rangers feel that improving dialogue, providing information and education are the key to achieving a balance between different user groups and encouraging responsible cycling on the Hill. To this effect, an initial meeting has taken place with key people involved in local mountain biking to look at how such activities can take place without compromising the natural beauty of Corstorphine Hill LNR. This improved dialogue will continue until a balance is achieved. The Countryside Ranger Service, as land managers, need to control this activity and if this means a designated area where trail building can occur and be actively managed, this seems the most sensible option to pursue. Nothing will take place on the ground without full consultation of local community groups, regular users of the Hill and key stakeholders first.

David Kyles (Countryside Ranger, City of Edinburgh Council Countryside Ranger Service) david.kyles@edinburgh.gov.uk

History Book

Corstorphine Hill - The Finest Views The Eye Can Feast On
Published 4th April 2008 by 'The Friends of Corstorphine Hill'
48pp, 15 colour illustrations, 18 black & white.
Price £5 plus postage and packing £1-50 (UK) £2-80 overseas airmail.

Copies can be obtained from Fred Davies (old fashioned contact details in Newsletter No. 31) or ordered through any member of the committee.

EVENTS UPDATE

Guided walks

A summer programme of guided walks is being arranged for the season 2012. Topics so far include 'Geology and Early History', 'Bird Walk and Watch', 'Wild Plants Walk - Natives, Naturalized and Nasties', 'Storytelling for Children in the Walled Garden', 'Butterflies, Bees and other Beasties' and 'Fungus Foray'. Further details can be found at this link. In addition, the City of Edinburgh Council Countryside Ranger Service have organised a National Spring Clean event on Corstorphine Hill LNR.

Evening talks

A winter programme of evening talks has been arranged for the season 201/2012. Topics include 'The Union Canal, Past and Present' and 'Edinburgh Old and New'. Further details can be found at this link.

Tower

The Corstorphine Hill Tower will be open to visitors every Sunday afternoon 2-4 pm, from 6th May until 23rd September. Further details of opening times at this link.

GET INVOLVED...

Volunteers

We need volunteers - if you can join in with any of our activites, such as

committee work
giving a talk
leading a walk
newsletter delivery
newsletter production
organising talks
organising walks
taking a turn on the Tower rota
Walled Garden maintenance

please let us know ... many hands make light work ... and you will be made most welcome.

Friends membership renewal

The fee is £1 per member per year. Donations are also always very welcome! Please hand in your name(s) and fee(s) to any of the committee members. If you would like to join see the Membership page and/or use the ready to print form.

Comments, suggestions and information are welcome
Email to: friends@corstorphinehill.org.uk

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Latest update - April 2012