Edinburgh-Glasgow Union Canal: Seagull Trust Cruises from Ratho
Seagull Trust Cruises is a Scottish charity, running barges on the Scottish canals, offering free canal cruises for the elderly and people with special needs. It has been in operation since 1979 and started in Ratho. This website gives a photograph supported commentary on our cruises from the branch at Ratho on the outskirts of Edinburgh.
Not everything shown in photographs will be visible from a barge. It is more of a background to what is nearby that the crew can tell you about.
Although this was created to support the Trust cruises, it is equally applicable to people who just want to walk along the towpath. Indeed walkers can divert to see things just away from the canal.
Cruises West from Ratho
Our Cruise west from Ratho has 3 options:
Ratho to Wilkies Basin and return taking about 90 minutes: Stage 1 below.
Ratho to Almondell and return taking about 150 minutes: Stages 1 and 2 below.
Ratho to M8 motorway and return taking about 210 minutes: Stages 1, 2 and 3 below.
It is also possible to do a one way trip Ratho to Almondell in either direction.
Approximate Map Scale: Ratho to Bonnington Aqueduct is approx 2.5 kilometres along the canal.
Cruises travel right to left on the map for the outward journey
Click on a button to see a description of each stage:
Cruise East From Ratho
This cruise has no options. The possible barge turning points are all close to the Scott Russell Aqueduct.
Approximate Map Scale: Ratho to the Scott Russell Aqueduct is approx 5 kilometres along the canal.
This cruise travels from left to right on the map for the outward journey.