Three stops for Scottish giants

One of my three stops on my trip from Dundee to Edinburgh. 

My journey from Dundee back to Edinburgh was the “Day of Giants” as I made stops to sightsee at an enormous boat elevator, visit the birthplace of a titan of industry and check out the gigantic metal horse heads visible from one of Scotland’s main highways.

The stained glass window honoring
Andrew Carnegie in the museum
at his birthplace. 

Stop #1: Dunfermline, the birthplace of U.S. steel magnate and philanthropist extraordinaire, Andrew Carnegie. He was born in this small town north of Edinburgh before his parents took him to America. His father was a weaver and his mother was an entrepreneur who ran a grocery in the front of their house and fixed shoes when automation cost Carnegie’s father his job.

Best fact: Young Andrew Carnegie became one of only three people in the U.S. who could translate Morse Code by ear making him a huge commodity for businesses that prized speed in communication.

Stop #2: The Falkirk Wheel. Instead of using traditional locks on a channel, engineers built a giant elevator for boats powered by water and gravity.

Best fact: It has the capacity to lift 100 elephants using only the energy required of heating eight teakettles.

Bonus fact: The design was inspired by the shape of a whale’s ribcage bones.

The giant boat elevator at rest as the orange tour boat floats in. 

The Falkirk wheel in motion as it lifts the boat up to the channel above. 

Once it connects, the boat floats down the channel. 

Stop #3: The Kelpies. These giant metal horse heads, unveiled in 2014, tower over the M9 – one of the busiest highways in Scotland and sit in a quaint park that includes wildlife (ducks, swans and even a heron or crane – I can’t tell the difference.) 

This bird slowly waded through the pond right in front of me. 

Best fact: Kelpies are part of Scottish mythology. They are "malevolent spirits" who dwell in rivers and often appear as horses to attract riders – but have sticky hides that won't let the rider dismount. 

A benevolent traveler snapped my photo in front of one of the Kelpies before I left just as the clouds rolled in.