Dean Village and Belford Areas

Included here for historical reasons because the overgrown site to the left of the footbridge has long since been built on. The children are my son and daughter as they were in the late '70s.

An early shot (late '70s) of the village from the Dean Bridge. Taken with a fisheye lens.

I photographed the Dean Village in the '70s when it was looking rather unkempt and scruffy.

A dramatic view down to the village only 500m from Princes Street and the city centre. The Water of Leith is flowing east under the bridge.

Attractive 1875 stone work commemorating Edinburgh School Board.

At the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art at 74 Belford Road is this earthworks designed by Charles Jencks. You are permitted to walk along its curved pathways.

The water reflects the autumn colours. Belford Road is visible at the back, connecting Queensferry Road to Palmerston Place.

A wider view, taken in November sunshine.

This is in Edinburgh's West End near Palmerston Place and the Belford Bridge over the Water of Leith.

Note how only the lower two stories have the very expensive curved glass. Overlooking the Dean Village. Nikon Coolpix 900 1.2Megapixel camera with 24mm equivalent lens

The earlier picture of Douglas Gardens above was taken at the end of the 20th century on my first digital camera. In 2009 I thought it worth photographing again with a higher resolution DSLR.

A second shot taken close up with the Pentax *ist wide angle lens.

If you walk the riverside path between Belford Bridge and Roseburn you'll find this stairway up to the area behind the former Donaldson's School.

The footbridge here crosses to the walkway at the other side of the river. The steps here lead to private gardens behind Douglas Crescent.

Photographed from the north end, looking back over towards Randolph Cliff on the other side of the gorge of the Water of Leith.

The Water of Leith is down below on the right, overlooked by the rear of Randolph Crescent. The tenement houses to the left are Great Stuart Street

St Bernard's Well nestling in the trees. Chancelot Flourmill and Inchkeith Island can be seen in the distance.

Cars coming down Queensferry Street from the West End can no longer fork left at the Dean Bridge for a shortcut along Belford Road. This is Drumsheugh Baths.

Drumsheugh Baths is not a public swimming baths. When I was a pupil at Daniel Stewart's College we eventually got to go swimming there.

A closer look at the windows and metal grilles at the entrance.

Turner-nominated Scottish artist Nathan Coley's illuminated text in the garden of the Dean Gallery is taken from a 17th Century royal proclamation made in a French town believed to have been the frequent site of miracles.

The side road drops away on the left behind the wall, leading into the the newer part of Dean Village.

High stone walls on both sides of Belford Road and tall stone tenements. Wooden and metal doors are set into the wall on the south side giving access from private gardens up above.

A long lens view up Queensferry Street from the top of Bell's Brae juxtaposes part of Edinburgh Castle with other assorted architecture.

Belford Weir

On the opposite bank a heron looks for something to eat.

Higgledy piggledy windows are scattered across this building (top left of next picture).

A jogger runs across the bridge behind which is pictured an assortment of architecture.

Another view showing the Water of Leith flowing under the bridge.

From the bridge, the view downstream.

From the south bank of the river looking across.

A closer look.

Zoomed in on the detail between the two windows.

Sculptor Antony Gormley created the cast iron figures. This is the one nearest Dean Village.

This part of the path heads downstream (east) at the back of Donaldson's and parallel to Douglas Crescent. The Water of Leith is behind the mossy wall on the left.

Comparatively new blocks of flats overlook the river here.

A remnant of an old mill building has been preserved.

This footbridge leads across to the Hilton hotel

Compare the water level with this picture and the next one!

This photo shows the high water level in 2000.

I balanced precariously to take pictures back in 1999. We found a short detour.

Our detour round the flood was via Damside to Dean Path, the main road through the village. After crossing the river the road continues up Bell's Brae. The Water of Leith Walkway continues from the Bell's Brae side.

Bridge carrying Belford Road across the valley, connecting the Gallery of Modern Art on the left to Dean Village on the right.

After crossing the footbridge the path continues downstream along this wooden walkway which is supported by steel girders where it passes below Belford Road.

Facing upstream towards Belford from Dean Village direction. The gorge is steep here where the river bends and prone to landslides.

The tall tenements of Rothesay Terrace overlook the village.

The same viewpoint but with the camera lowered to show the footbridge. Cross here to continue through Dean Village.

A surreal-looking image. The iron man seems to be gazing across Belford Road at an exhibition by (appropriately) The Surrealists.

The complete statue is here, buried under the pavement.

Across the road another metal man: 'Master of the Universe' is based on a famous drawing by William Blake, which shows the scientist Isaac Newton.

A side view of Master of the Universe by Eduardo Paolozzi.

Previously photographed but the ivy was looking rather splendid today at the start of October.

More conventional perspective than the fisheye shot.

Following a landslide which closed the footpath the ground next to the path has been stabilised by wooden planks and metal reinforcements.

The falling water has been smoothed by a Sony app.

A conventional shot at 1/160 second 'freezes' the water.

Assorted stones in the water, many of which have been painstakenly balanced on top of one another to make simple sculptures.

A view of more recent buildings which accomodate 'yourGP'.

December 2015. Bell's Brae is the steep little street leading down from the Dean Bridge.

The main path through the village on the south side of the river passes these steps leading up to Belford Road and Drumsheugh Baths Club.

A little further along this route takes you to Hawthornbank Lane. Two men are restoring its paintwork with immaculate precision.

Climbing along the fence enabled me to get more photos and some video.

Blending multiple shots together to smooth the water.

The footpath is visible in the background, leading upstream.

A fallen leaf lies on the mossy wall which retreats into the distance.

Looking over the top of the mossy wall towards the river.

A moss-free patch of wall is speckled with lichen.

Ascending the path to Wester Coates gives you some unusual views of this building.

This is the west side. The south side on the right faces onto West Coates, the main road from Haymarket. Wester Coates refers to the leafy lanes with the swanky houses.

The end of January 2016 and recent rain has raised the level of the Water of Leith, though not as much as rivers elsewhere. Photographed from the footbridge.

The adjacent path was closed but it often is as it's very low.

I stepped through the gate to take this photo and enabled the Sony camera's Smoothing app.

The tall tenements at Rothesay Place tower over Belford Road. The adjacent lane has had its wall reinforced. I visited the area primarily to take spherical photos.

This is a rectilinear image of a 360 degree photo of the same place. Visit the 360º page for more views.

Photographed from Lynedoch Place. There are few views of Telford's bridge from this area because of the trees. In January without leaves there's a glimpse between the branches.

The doorway of the building at the south end of the bridge adjacent to Bell's Brae. The Latin inscription means Peace to those who enter.

At the north side of Dean Bridge is Eton Terrace and the entrance to the private Dean Gardens. On June 5 2016 there was an open day costing £3 admission. Annual membership is £115.

Because the gardens are private there are well maintained paths, fences and flowerbeds etc. This view looks under Dean Bridge towards Dean Village.

The same viewpoint but zoomed on on the view of Dean Village.

A delightful path leads down to a viewpoint of the weir. There are bench seats at all the best viewpoints.

The Water of Leith and the weir from private Dean Gardens

2 views of the weir.

Closer

A heron landed in the pool just below the weir.

Another, slightly wider view of the scene.

A look up at the Dean Bridge from the upstream side before continuing our walk downstream. The building whose top is visible is at Randolph Cliff, part of Lynedoch Place.

Taking the low riverside path downstream.

On the opposite bank is St Bernard's Well, also having an open day,

A veranda runs along the foot of the building and above its left end is this plaque. I can just read the name Nelson carved into the pink granite. The gold coloured text above is more legible.

The statue at Saint Bernard's Well photographed in 2014 in infrared.

Just upstream from St Bernard's Well there's access to the Water of Leith. Children play and dogs get the chance of a drink of water.

Back nearer the Dean Bridge again with the tenements of Randolph Cliff looming above.

A last look at the Dean Bridge, facing due south.

A sunny day in April 2014 saw walkers disregarding PATH CLOSED signs and walking along this section of the path. We saw the same thing happening at Colinton Dell.

Another infrared photo shows people approaching part of the path that had been barricaded off.

A classic view of Dean Village but photographed in infrared.

2nd infrared view but from the other side of the bridge.

Infrared view upstream from the Dean Path / Bells Brae bridge.

From the same bridge the view downstream. The church overlooks the north end of Dean Bridge.

The same view as 18ir but in normal colour

On Dean Bridge facing downriver. The streets on the right are Randolph Crescent, Great Stuart Street and Ainslie Place.

DEAN BRIDGE 1832 DESIGNED BY THOMAS TELFORD BORN ESKDALEMUIR 1757

On the way up Dean Path to Dean Cemetery