Jumping in Queensferry

Let's go on a boat trip! We're taking the Maid of the Forth sightseeing cruise, departing from South Queensferry on the Firth of Forth bank.

The boat is scheduled to depart at 2 p.m., so we take it easy in the morning. Around 1pm, we are out and walk around in the streets of Edinburgh, taking the long way to the station.

We take the local train from Waverley station to Dalmeny, watched by countless sheep and passing by EDI airport. Once in Dalmeny, we are thankful to Google Maps for helping us find the steep hidden walking path from the station down to the pier. It is a tiny path in the forest that ends with a huge flight of stairs passing under the 19th-century rail bridge.

We are 30 minutes early for the boat trip, so we decide to explore  The Hawes Inn  in front of the pier. I like inns, and this one is particularly charming. We quickly have to dunk our beer in the garden outside though, as it is time to board. We do find the time to take a jumping pic on the pier before boarding.

Our ride arrives a bit before 2 p.m., and we board the Maid of the Forth (nothing to do with May the Fourth, in case you're wondering), with a few other passengers. Quickly after, we are at sea, as the Firth of Forth is the estuary (Firth) for several rivers, including the River Forth.

We sit outside at the top aft of the small ship, listening to the audio while passing by the biggest oil terminal in the UK, collecting oil from countless platforms in the North Sea. As we are going toward the sea, it quickly gets chilly and windy, and we spend the rest of the trip inside, which makes the ride way more comfortable.

We arrive at the Inchcolm island, towered by a very old and impressive-looking Abbey. You can book a cruise that lets you go on the island and catches you on the next tour. We have the cruise-only version, and our tour is the last of the day anyway, so we collect all the remaining tourists left on the island, and a priest, and we start the return journey.

On the way back, we cross the three emblematic bridges that cross the Firth and listen to stories about them.

• The Forth Bridge, the one for the trains, is the most magnificent for me. It is the red one to the right in the jumping pic. It is still going strong and was refitted a few years ago.
• The second bridge, the Forth Road Bridge, with its 2.5-kilometer span, was the longest suspended bridge in the world at the time of its inauguration in 1964. Sadly, it recently started to show signs of structural weaknesses and was mostly closed down.
• This led to the construction of the third and most recent bridge, the Queensferry Crossing Bridge. With 2.7km, it was also the longest triple-tower cable-stayed bridge in the world at the time of its inauguration in 2017.

All very impressive, and a great day on the water!