SCOTLAND. DAY 4. THE MAN WHO TURNED THE BULL
No waterfalls on this day, but it was the best day in Scotland and the best day of the entire trip. The photo is the upper waterfall of the Fairy Pools from Day 2.
I met my wife and kids at the airport in Edinburgh the previous night. They went over separately from me because they were doing a tour of various places with another group. They saw quite a few places in England and France, but that was not something I had any desire to do. They were in Paris just a couple days after Notre Dame burned. It is sad they did not get to see it (except from the outside). But I want to see waterfalls, not museums.
However, there is one thing I really did want to see that is not waterfall related, and that is my family heritage. Turnbull is Scottish, and there were quite a few things to see from the Turnbull history. My wife also wanted to see her Dunbar heritage (my wife’s maiden name).
From Edinburgh, we drove down to Hawick in the Scottish Borders. There is a statue here of a man turning a bull. The legend goes that William of Rule saved the king of Scots Robert the Bruce from a bull attack, by turning the bull’s head around the year 1313. The king changed his name to Turnbull, and thus our heritage was begun. The king also granted land to the Turnbulls on the Borders. The Turnbulls were famous fighters, and this area was frequently attacked by the English. There is a castle here called Fatlips Castle which we hiked up to and had lunch. It was built and owned by the Turnbulls for around 200 years, serving as a lookout against invading English. It sits on top of a hill with a stunning view of the Borders area. We also visited a church yard in Bedrule where there is a cairn dedicated to the Turnbull Reivers (fighters) and many old tombstones of Turnbulls. Some of these are so old you cannot read them any more.
His arms robust the hardy hunter flung
Around his bending horns and upward wrung
With writhing force his neck retorted round
And rolled the panting monster on the ground
Crushed with enormous strength his bony skull
And courtiers hailed the man who turned the bull.
John Leyden
We then drove to the town of Dunbar. Here there are ruins of the old Dunbar castle. Not much is left of the castle, but it is very interesting to visit. I was also thrilled to visit the birthplace and museum of John Muir, who was born in Dunbar. We arrived at the museum 20 minutes before closing, just enough time to walk around it. It is a fantastic little museum, and I’m so glad I got to see it.
In Dunbar, we watched some Scottish boys jumping into the harbor (in the ocean). No wet suits. No towels to dry off afterwards. You have got to be kidding me. That water must have been freezing. I would think they would get hypothermia in minutes, yet they continued to jump in multiple times. Scottish boys are NUTS.
