Day 27 Melrose to Jedburgh Wednesday 8 June

Distance 17.58 miles, cumulative 456.67 miles, time 6 hrs 25 mins, walking time 5 hrs 40 mins, pace 3.1 mph, Camped Jedburgh Camping and Caravan Club Site
The route today followed 2 rivers, a Roman Road named Dere Street and crossed a wobbly bridge. 

We followed national cycle route one and the St Cuthbert’s Way footpath from Melrose to Jedburgh. St. Cuthbert’s Way carries on to Holy Island on the East Coast and we met a few groups of walkers doing that route on the trail today. 

We left the River Tweed having followed it on and off for two days and then spent most of the day on Dere Street which contrary to our expectation was a meandering path through a tree line albeit along the route of the old Roman Road. We passed a monument to Wellington which Steve was keen to point out- little things🙄.

We passed through Boswells and the extensive grounds and land around Monteviot House. A crossing of the River Teviot was made on a suspension bridge which had a bit of a wobble to it. We reached the campsite only to find that we could not access it from the road we were on and so had a further mile or so to go crossing the same River Jed twice to get to it’s entrance. A mile is not far but it seem longer at the end of the day. 

Jedburgh, like many of the border towns has an interesting history. The ruined Abbey is pretty spectacular and it has an old Courthouse oft visited by Sir Walter Scott which still functions today. 

We had a pack of maps waiting for us at the campsite which cover the first half of the Pennine Way, which we will join tomorrow shortly after crossing the border into England.

We spent the early evening doing our planning for the next week in the glorious sunshine we had had all day.