Down by the river
The River Tweed and its tributaries are omnipresent on these three lovely riverside routes – a perfect introduction to some of the trails found locally.
Lyne Station circular, Peebles
Starting and finishing in the centre of Peebles, this gorgeous riverside trail follows the Tweed upstream beneath Neidpath Castle on riverside paths and parts of a dismantled railway line all the way to Lyne Station before doubling back via Barns Tower. Mostly level but with a short, sharp climb after the Manor bridges. Also forms part of the route of the annual Tweed Valley Tunnel Trail Run (pictured, a must-do!).
11km round trip | Ascent: 125m | Route details
Tweed Valley Railway Path
Not a trail run as such, but this tarmacked, multi-use path that connects Peebles with Walkerburn offers a wonderful opportunity to run alongside the Tweed on the route of an old railway line. The full, extended route from Peebles to Walkerburn is around 12km, although it can easily be broken up into shorter sections with stops at Cardrona and Innerleithen.
12km one way | Ascent: Negligible | Route details
Leithen Water Circuit, Innerleithen
A gentle run starting from near the centre of Innerleithen that heads through lovely Pirn Wood, following the Leithen Water to a golf course just outside town, returning via a fish ladder and a hidden riverside path.
4.5km round trip | Ascent: 66m | Route details
Further information
For many more runs locally, we recommend visiting Walkhighlands, an online resource with downloadable route maps and detailed descriptions. Almost all the walks listed also make for excellent runs. Look out too for guidebooks from Moffat-based publisher Pocket Mountains, plus the ‘Paths around’ series of walking guidebooks produced by Scottish Borders Council. Finally, Walk Scottish Borders is another useful resource.