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The Merlin Trail – Day 5 Gododdin & Selcovia

Driving Route

The Merlin Trail – Day 5 Gododdin & Selcovia

Driving

Scotland’s Early Dark Age heritage (between the departure of the Romans and the arrival of St Columba) is one of the most dynamic and dramatic periods yet it is much neglected in our history books where two hundred years often merit little more than a couple of paragraphs.

The trail is as chronologically logical as possible but can be visited in reverse order, or any order – or simply one location at a time when you fancy it. Overall this is a seven day itinerary but it is organised in 4 themes so that it can be broken down into one or two day trips. These incorporate all the major Dark Age sites of the 5th, 6th and early 7th centuries in the area.

You can easily follow this trail as listed here, using the on-site boards for information but there is a very detailed book with the history and the full route (which carries on up to Dunbar and beyond.) The gazetteer in the book and website also give you a good idea of what there is to see.

height
Distance:
54mi / 87km
trending_flat
Total climb:
4,658ft / 1,420m
trending_flat
Total descent:
5,150ft / 1,570m
Our best efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy of data, however the data and geographic information contained along route lines and on maps should be used for informational purposes only.

What you'll see

Yarrow Stone - Yarrow

Ancient

A standing stone, it is highly unusual and has a Latin inscription commemorating two princes of the British kingdom of Strathclyde.


The Catrail - Hawick

History & Heritage

The Catrail is a linear earthwork that runs from Robert's Linn, a burn flowing into the Slitrig Water, westward.


Roxburgh Castle - Kelso

Ruins

The ruins of Roxburgh Castle sits near to the joining point of the River Tweed and Teviot.