For those that love the outdoors there is a variety of different activities available close at hand including horse riding, exhilarating cycling routes, fishing, golf and spectacular walking – the Southern Upland Way crosses the Thirlestane Estate. There is a small community leisure centre in Lauder which has a fully equipped gym that is available on a ‘pay as you go’ basis. The Scottish Borders is also renowned for its variety of crafts and is famous for producing quality textiles such as tweed, cashmere and tartan. Take a visit to a traditional workshop and workers will be more than happy to demonstrate their skills. There are several places throughout the Borders that offer visitor experiences including Lochcarron in Selkirk. The town of Hawick is the home of cashmere and there are several mills to visit here along with the Borders Distillery. Lots of the local attractions have children’s programmes such as Paxton House, Bowhill and Edinburgh Castle and many of the local towns have special places for small people. Watch out for Pot-a-Doodle Do near Berwick, the Scottish Borders Donkey Sanctuary near St Boswells and the opportunity to monkey around swinging between the tree