Union Canal, West Lothian

9 miles / 14 km

This is the next-to-final stage on the walk from Falkirk Wheel to Edinburgh, the complete Union Canal walk. The walk is flat. The walk is more or less in two halves where the first half has some spectacular scenery and the second half has not so much of that. The final half a mile/ one kilometer is a descent on a good pavement down to the Edinburgh Park railway station. This is still a great walk.

Pretty Hard

This is a flat walk again with some great scenery. The path is a bit narrow at times and requires full concentration. Walk, stop and admire the scenery and then walk again. That is the way to avoid falling into the canal. The surface is good and the path becomes wider between Ratho and Edinburgh Path. Bring plenty of water, protein bars and good shoes.




Train from Glasgow Queen Street lower level to Uphall train stop 2 times an hour. Taxi from Uphall train stop, at phone number 01506 300000. Book the taxi to Broxburn Bridge, West Main Street, Broxburn. The cost should be around £ 8 - £ 15.
You can also do the CityLink bus Glasgow - Livingston - Edinburgh Airport shuttle to Broxburn. It is an every second hour service and it takes around 2 hours from Glasgow to Broxburn. Don't do it.

Leave the taxi at the Broxburn Bridge and take the steps from the bridge down to the canal. Take the canal to the left here, in the direction of Edinburgh.




The canal turns to the left again on a wide bend and the scenery from here back towards Broxburn and the slag heaps are great.



The canal now passes under the Edinburgh - Glasgow motorway and the silence is being disturbed by the road traffic.



The canal now enters a rural area and the next two pictures give a taster of this stretch of the canal.







The canal crosses the River Almond on the Almond Aqueduct. A pretty short aqueduct with a cobblestone surface that requires full concentration. The views from this aqueduct are also impressive.



The next mile or so / three kilometers between Almond Aqueduct and Ratho are very impressive through a forest and a canyon. The next four pictures speak for themselves.














Ratho, the halfway point on this walk, has a marina and feels like a quirky little village. The canal passes through the outskirts of this village.



The canal continues its way to Edinburgh through a scenic landscape. Edinburgh Castle and the three bridges spanning the Forth can be seen from here.



The final part of this walk has some good scenery before the canal crosses the busy Edinburgh bypass motorway and the walk leaves the canal 300 yards / meters further on. The final three pictures are from this bit of the canal.















Leave the canal at the signpost for Edinburgh Park. When the path ends at Cultins Road, walk down the long hill/descent to the railway line at the bottom of this hill. Take the Hermiston Road to the left and cross the road to the railway station where this walk ends.

Train from Edinburgh Park to Glasgow Queen Street 2 - 3 times an hour.