by Helen Westwood

THIS AUGUST we spent a week travelling in our camper and horsing around Scotland. We stopped off at beaches to do some wildlife spotting and photography but I also wanted to visit the Kelpies again. These mindblowing sculptures are set in the 350 acres of Helix Park near Falkirk, between the motorway and the canal.

You can’t help feeling goosebumps up the back of your neck when you get your first glimpse of these jaw-dropping and impressive steel horse sculptures from the motorway.

Once we had parked up at Helix Park we could get a closer look at these magnificent beasts, against the dramatic background of the Ochil Hills. As the light changes they almost seem to be moving and shimmering in the sun.

Sometimes the light makes them glisten as if they have just emerged from the water. The mythical Kelpies were shape-shifting water spirits, often taking on an equine form and it was said that if you tried to mount a Kelpie it would rear up and plunge you deep into the water to face certain death. I’m still shuddering at the thought!

The Kelpies are the largest equine sculpture in the World and the largest public sculpture in Scotland. They were designed by the Scottish sculptor, Andy Scott. His other displayed works include The Heavy Horse at Glasgow Business Park and Arria in Cumbernauld. He based his idea on the heavy workhorses who once pulled the barges on the canals and were used in farming. Clydesdale horses were suited to this work due to their size, strength and placid temperament, making them easy to handle. They were also used by companies to pull goods wagons, such as the Co-op Wholesale Society, Clydesdale Brewery and Barr Soft Drinks who manufacture Irn-Bru today.