The River Dee and Brig o’ Dee

Often on weekends, when there’s no pandemic, we venture out into the countryside for walks and picnics. Today I found myself missing that peace, quiet, and feeling of remoteness since we haven’t left the city for more than a month now. I do love living in the inner city with its convenience but I also feel the need to escape from it semi-regularly.

To satisfy these cravings we went for a walk today beside the River Dee. There were quite a few people out walking and cycling but it didn’t feel crowded. The path in the next four photos runs from Duthie Park to the Brig o’ Dee (Bridge of Dee).

This is the Brig o’ Dee, a beautiful granite and sandstone bridge, built in 1527. In 1639 it was host to a  mighty battle between covenanters (Scottish Presbyterian movement) and Charles I’s army. The disagreement was over, of all things, a prayer book that Charles I introduced and which the covenanters opposed. The covenanters won. Thank goodness the bridge suffered no lasting damage for so trivial a battle and we get to appreciate it today. It is beautiful.

One of the nice things about Aberdeen is you don’t have to travel very far before you get the feeling of being in a rural setting. Just past the Brig o’ Dee the path becomes a dirt track and the countryside appears on the opposite bank.

I’ve never seen this path before and I’m not sure how far it goes. It runs beside the River Dee on the northern bank and goes right behind B&Q, David Lloyd, Sainsburys, and Robert Gordon University. We only went as far as Robert Gordon University.