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The West Lothian Bings


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A couple of weeks back I was cycling along the canal around Broxburn when I suddenly had the notion to climb up the Greendykes Bing. What a wonderful underused place. Sure there are signs of motor bikes using the slopes but I wandered over a relatively large unused area of Central Scotland on a sunny day and I was the only person there. It's not quite Urban Exploration but if you haven't done it yet it's worth a punt. It's a bit sore on the calves climbing up the shifting shale waste but once up there, you can see that nature is reclaiming it.

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Any of you been up the bings?

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Represent the start of the world's evil oil industry so they do. Feel the death of a polar bear with every step you take up them.

At least the industry has ceased now. Unless, of course, they start fracking but, correct me if I'm wrong, that doesn't involve huge heaps of waste. Not that the polar bears care about that.

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Remember this was the view at West Calder United's old park:Burngrange%20Park%20%28West%20Calder%20U

That's the Five Sisters bing and it's still there. Others have disappeared as they've been used as materials for road-building programmes. It's amazing how green the surviving bings have become now if you climb up them.

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There's one near me at Seafield I take the dog up sometimes, nice view on a clear day. You can just make out Edinburgh. There used to be one near me in Livingston, past the Lizzie Bryce roundabout heading up the A71. I used to love playing there as a kid, it's not there now and it's a industrial estate now.

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That's the Five Sisters bing and it's still there. Others have disappeared as they've been used as materials for road-building programmes. It's amazing how green the surviving bings have become now if you climb up them.

It isn't amazing at all.

They spent a fortune landscaping the unique looking bigassed pink hills and turning them into boring old green hills.

The only upside is that they are now less dangerous. Sheil is pretty similar to slate, the stuff cavemen used to make axes out of. It made for some 'extreme' sledging.

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It isn't amazing at all.

They spent a fortune landscaping the unique looking bigassed pink hills and turning them into boring old green hills.

The only upside is that they are now less dangerous. Sheil is pretty similar to slate, the stuff cavemen used to make axes out of. It made for some 'extreme' sledging.

I thought they just left them and nature gradually re-colonised. I bow to your superior knowledge.

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The only upside is that they are now less dangerous. Sheil is pretty similar to slate, the stuff cavemen used to make axes out of. It made for some 'extreme' sledging.

I can see the extreme sledging angle and I nearly did some of my own trying to come down. The shale moves under your feet on the slopes.

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