Dere Street Roman Road, Soutra

Dere Street Roman Road, Soutra

The Roman road of Dere Street (Deere Street, or Via Regia) runs from the city of York, through Hadrian's Wall at Corbridge, Northumberland, to Cramond, on the south bank of the River Forth. On this high stretch between the Lammermuir and Moorfoot Hills the road is very well preserved, though much is now covered in turf.

Next to the course of Dere Street are quarry pits where the Romans dug gravel to use in constructing the road.

Dere Street runs beside Soutra Aisle, the remnants of a 12th-century hospital founded by Malcolm IV that was later used as a burial aisle by the Pringle family. It is a matter of only a few minutes stroll between the two sites, and there is a common parking area for both.

OUR VISIT

In truth, you do have to use your imagination a bit to get the most out of this site. Though an information board does a good job of explaining the layout of the road, the passage of time has meant that the contours of the road are now something of a challenge to make out clearly.