Forest bathing at Hermitage of Braid and Blackford Hill

The Hermitage of Braid is a narrow wooded valley where the Braid Burn runs between mossy rock slopes and mature broadleaved trees. It was Edinburgh's first Local Nature Reserve, declared in 1993, and the 18th-century Hermitage House at the western end is now the base for the council's Natural Heritage Service. The valley is enclosed and green, so the sound of the burn soon takes over from the city around it.

Most people come in from Braid Road at the western end, near the house, and follow the broad path east along the water. That main path is the busy one; the side paths that climb the slopes are quieter, and the valley carries on east towards Blackford Hill if you want open ground and long views after the trees. There is a walled wildlife garden near the old doocot, looked after by the Friends group. The burnside path is wide and well used, but the slopes are steep in places and can be muddy after rain.