ONCE upon a time, two young would-be wizards full of wonder went on an unusual journey. From the elephant’s house to the owls’ garden, they climbed twisty-turny streets and cast road-crossing spells; they felt the swoosh of air from magical wings and duelled bravely upon the grave of the darkest wizard of all….

It is not difficult to get Harry Wallace and Skyla Potter excited about the famous boy wizard who (sort of) shares their names.

Harry, who is 10 and 11-year-old Skyla, both from East Kilbride, are Hogwarts super-fans, experts in all there is to know about the wonderful wizarding world conjured up by author Joanne Kathleen Rowling when she was a young mother living in Edinburgh.

Rowling is the author of the Harry Potter books, seven fine novels about a boy wizard and his friends and enemies at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You knew that? Ten points to Gryffindor. But then, only those who have been living in a cupboard under the stairs for the last 20 years could have missed the books, and the subsequent films, the merchandise, the website, the TV documentaries, the Fantastic Beasts offshoot movies and the west end stage play which followed.

Rowling is now a famous philanthropist, film and television producer and screenwriter, with fans all over the world – but once upon a time she was a struggling writer in Edinburgh and the city is very proud of the association.

Harry and Miss Potter were immediately entranced by the idea of spending a day on the Storybook Trail, discovering places connected to Rowling and the characters she created.

“Voldemort is buried in Edinburgh?” marvelled Skyla, a little fearfully. “We will need our wands,” frowned Harry, ever the practical one.

VisitScotland’s new Storybook Trail is not just for Harry Potter fans. The idea is simple but clever – by creating a colourful map linking a collection of characters and stories with connections to Scotland, either by author, location or experience, it inspires people to embark upon their own literary adventures, from page to place.

Other suggestions, if Potter does not float your boat, include Peter Pan (Kirriemuir, birthplace of author J M Barrie), The Gruffalo (Ardkinglas Estate, home to a trail inspired Julia Donaldson’s tale) and Peter Rabbit (Dunkeld, where Beatrix Potter created her most famous fluffy character.)

It is a self-led trail, so you can organise it to fit your day out or short break, and the map is available online and in print from select VisitScotland icentres, bookshops and libraries.

Jenni Steele, Film and Creative Industries Manager at VisitScotland, says: “Scotland has world-class literary links. Our landscapes, history and people have inspired writers for centuries, helping to bring to life enduring characters that capture the imaginations of not just youngsters but grown-ups too.

“A great story has to have great characters and that’s what inspired Scotland’s Storybook Trail. We wanted to create something, as we celebrate the Year of Young People 2018, that encourages booklovers of all ages to discover the places and people behind these famous fictional friends."

Marc Lambert, CEO of Scottish Book Trust, agrees. “Scotland has a rich history of iconic literary characters, created or inspired by its places and people,” he says. “Visiting locations with a special connection to favourite stories or figures is a real thrill for fans of any age. It’s a great way to take a trip round our beautiful country and enjoy again, or for the first time, some of the greatest Scottish stories ever told – and the places where the creative spark started.”

For Rowling, that creative spark was certainly fuelled in a variety of locations around Edinburgh. Since the author revealed she used to write in cafes in the city, many have claimed her as a customer. Some, such as Spoon (formerly Nicolson’s) on Nicolson Street don’t like to make too much of a fuss about the connection, while others, such as The Elephant House on George IV Bridge, positively shout about it.

Harry and Skyla love The Elephant House, a cosy and quirky tea-and-coffee-house with a big back room overlooking Edinburgh Castle. Our friendly server gives them little red badges proclaiming the café as the ‘birthplace of Harry Potter’, and they add their own drawings to a noticeboard adorned with Potter-related pictures and scribblings on scraps of paper, envelopes and old receipts. The toilets have become a shrine to Rowling and her books, with every spare centimetre of space on the walls, doors and hand-dryers covered in spells, quotations from the books and messages to the author.

“You taught me how to read, love and believe” proclaims one, while another quotes Harry’s headmaster, Albus Dumbledore: “It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live”.

“I promise I’ll get round to reading your books one day,” says one joker, and there are lots of simple ‘thank-yous’ to Rowling.

Café bosses have given up trying to stop the graffiti from happening, but one of the staff tells us once a year the entire place is painted over – and within hours, it all starts again.

After soaking up the writers’ vibe over hot chocolate and pancakes (other authors, including Ian Rankin and Alexander McCall Smith, are also regular visitors), we set off to meet Liv, our Harry Potter Trail guide.

This is a free trail – you just make a donation, or not, at the end, depending upon how impressed you are – and it winds its merry way around some interesting Potter spots, beginning in Greyfriars Kirkyard. It is not affiliated to Rowling, nor endorsed by anyone connected to the books and films, the website is at pains to point out. But it’s fun and combines facts and anecdotes to great effect.

For example, gravestones scattered throughout the cemetery contain names which pop up in the books – William McGonagall, Scotland’s worst poet, is buried here and may have inspired the character of deputy headmistress Professor McGonagall; and one Thomas Riddell could have been the inspiration behind the most evil wizard of all time, Tom Riddle, aka Lord Voldemort, aka Harry Potter’s nemesis. The invitation to draw wands and duel in front of Voldemort’s grave is too much to resist, with all due respect to the real Mr Riddell. He was a young soldier who died in Trinidad in 1802, at the age of 26 and most likely, agreed Harry and Skyla, not even a wizard.

Liv is hilarious and engaging, and soon has a group of around 10 children practically stuck to her side as we move from site to site, grown-ups following closely behind. We are sorted into houses, at the gates of George Heriot School, the grand building which looks a bit like Hogwarts (Harry is a Gryffindor, brave and kind; Skyla and I are Hufflepuffs, loyal and hardworking); we are taught traffic-stopping spells at pedestrian crossings; and we hurry through the eerie underpass which looks a lot like the one where the spooky Dementors come for Harry’s awful cousin Dudley…

Harry and Skyla are impressed. “Liv is very funny, and I’ve learned a lot of things I didn’t know,” said Skyla. “It makes me want to read the books again, and find all the people and places we have learned about,” agreed Harry.

The Storybook Trail has a few more Potter-themed suggestions, including the Scottish Owl Centre at Polkemmet Country Park in West Lothian, and a trip on the real-life version of the Hogwarts Express, the Jacobite Steam Train, across the Glenfinnan Viaduct. The latter is too far away for a day trip, so we opt for the owls. This magical place is home to brothers and sisters of some of the owls who appeared in the Harry Potter films.

At the ticket office, a young owl hops up and down on the lap of the receptionist, eyeing us carefully as we pass by. It looks a little like Pigwidgeon, Ron Weasley’s first pet owl, agree Harry and Skyla.

The duo watch the flying demonstration, saucer-eyed, as owls both teeny and huge swoop and swish over their heads.

The Scottish Owl Centre is home to more than 100 owls from 40 species from around the world – most are breeding pairs on show in sensitively designed, spacious aviaries and the others make up the ‘flying display team’, the largest collection of trained owls in the world.

It is quite something, agree the young wizards, both secretly disappointed they cannot smuggle an owl or two home with them. Little cuddly toy ones in the gift shop will have to do.

Our heads crammed full of owl facts, we end our storybook trail over cake and ice cream in the cafe, but the ideas for where to go next come tumbling out.

“I’ve heard there’s a loch which was used as Hogwarts Lake in the films, I’d like to go there,” said Skyla, still enchanted by all things Potter.

“I’d like to visit Dumyat, which is the hill in the books by Rennie McOwan, where Gavin and his friends have adventures,” mused Harry.

“Or the island where Cressida Cowell wrote the How to be a Dragon books.”

Skyla is wary. “Dragons?” she raised her eyebrows, adding with a laugh: “It might be dangerous.”

“We will need our wands,” said Harry. Ever the practical one.

FIVE OTHER PLACES ON THE STORYBOOK TRAIL…

Braemar
This is where Robert Louis Stevenson wrote the swashbuckling adventure Treasure Island, and it is said the author based some of the characters on people he met in the village. Treasure Island is also rumoured to have been inspired by Fidra Island in East Lothian. Today, you are more likely to find puffins rather than pirates, as the island is an RSPB Scotland reserve.

Kirriemuir
JM Barrie, author of Peter Pan, was born here, and it is now home to a statue of his famous creation, the boy who never grew up. Moat Brae in Dumfries, where Barrie lived as a boy, inspired Neverland, the enchanted faraway place where Peter Pan, Tinkerbell and the Lost Boys outwit Captain Hook.

Dundee
It might have the V&A now, but Dundee has long been much more famous as the birthplace of comic creations Oor Wullie, Minnie the Minx and Desperate Dan. Look out for their statues in Dundee city centre and don’t miss the chance to grab a selfie on Bash Street.

Coll
The Isle of Coll in the Inner Hebrides was the real-life inspiration for Katie Morag’s home on the Isle of Stuay. Take a picnic to the beach, explore the island’s only real village, Arinagour, and keep an eye out for the whitewashed cottages which look just like the illustrations in Mairi Hedderwick’s books.

Dunkeld
Beatrix Potter created Peter Rabbit following childhood summer holidays in Dunkeld watching and drawing wildlife. Birnam Arts is a great place to learn about the region which inspired her, and you may also meet some of her other characters in the Beatrix Potter Exhibition Garden.

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