A walk, but not in the Park.

Most mornings as part of his daily exercise routine, Elder Bylund walks from our flat up along the river Tay, or the Firth of Tay as it is called. This is the estuary where Tay empties into the North Sea. It is salt water, ever changing with the tides. At spring tide, the difference in the water level between high and low tides is about 5 meters, or 15 feet.

Looking east, toward the North Sea, is a dock, which generally has one or two ships in port. In addition, oil drilling rigs from the North Sea come in to dock for weeks at at time.

The docks, with a ship and two oil drilling rigs east of our flat.

There are two bridges that cross the Tay as shown in the photo, the closer one (1.5 miles long) for pedestrian (I have walked it once), bike and vehicle traffic is, and the further one for rail traffic.

The Firth of Tay, looking west from our flat

Along the way, there is a “work of art” composed of 11 slabs of concrete spaced about 18 inches apart. The centers are cut out in the shape of a ship. 

There is ship inside there.

Looking form left to right

Looking from right to left

Further on down, is Chandler Lane, a street and buildings (now with flats) that are restored to how they  were in the 1800s.  

Chandler Lane

 Next is the observation tower, overlooking the Firth of Tay, which I climb several times, mostly for exercise.

Firth of Tay Observation Point

The waterfront area of Dundee is undergoing a major redevelopment, which won't be finished until 2016. Since we have arrived, there has been mostly demolition. I watched each day as this building was slowly demolished, such that there is not much left. 

Start of Demolition

Almost done

 This is a Hilton Hotel which is being demolished to make room for redevelopment. The large orange piece of equipment with jaws is one of several around the area. We affectionately call it a dinosaur, and when it is working, it is feeding. The smaller one in the lower left is a scavenger.

What used to be a hotel is now feeding grounds for dinosaurs. 

The ship Discovery, which was built in Dundee and sailed to the Antarctica about 1900, is in dry dock as a museum.  There is a second “dry dock” next to the Discovery. It was full of water when we came, but they are now filling in with, at least in part the rubble from the building above (above the hotel).

Former dry dock on the left. Discovery on the right. 

 In front of the museum four penguins (only two of which are shown) who greet visitors to the museum.

 As part of the redevelopment, they are redoing the approach to the Tay Bridge. We drive through here often, but haven't quite figured out what they are doing.

Redoing the on-ramp to the Tay River Bridge

Beyond the Discovery, is more of the path along the Firth of Tay, and it goes on for 4 miles.

Path and railroad bridge 

We live on kind of a peninsula, so on the way back I sometimes walk on the other side of the peninsula where there are two ships, a lightship and the Unicorn, a 46-gun frigate launched in 1824.

Northcarr Lightship. 

 Not exactly a hike through the woods, but not bad for a morning stroll.