Border Reivers · Cessford
Hobbie Kerr’s Cave near Cessford Castle
Mark searches near Cessford Castle for the cave linked in local tradition to the Border Reiver Hobbie Kerr.
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Watch Mark Nicol’s original film, first published on YouTube on 26 December 2018. Load the film below to play it here.
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Privacy & cookiesSome Border places survive in a story long after a path to them has become difficult to find. Near Cessford Castle, Mark sets out to locate the cave associated with Hobbie Kerr, a name carried through Reiver tradition.
The film is about the search as much as the destination. It follows the thrill of finding a feature that many people thought lost or collapsed, and of seeing how a local name keeps an older tale alive.
A place, a name and a Reiver tale
A cave can be located and described; the details of a legend attached to it need more care. The association with Hobbie Kerr is part of the site's local story, not proof of every episode later told about the Reiver. That distinction leaves the place no less compelling.
Watch the longer Hobbie Kerr film, then follow other Border Reiver stories across the Marches.
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