Bonaly (/bəˈnæli/) is an area on the south-western outskirts of Edinburgh and the northern slopes of the Pentland Hills, lying within the Parish of Colinton.

[6] Although now considered to be part of the Edinburgh suburb of Colinton, Bonaly was originally a small settlement in its own right.

There is no evidence to indicate when Bonaly was first settled, but the area has a long history of human occupation and the remains of an Iron Age hillfort may be seen at Clubbiedean, 2 km to the south-west.

The village of Bonaly is likely to have been home to a modest population of tenant farmers, living in cot-houses, raising livestock and practising the open field system of rig and furrow agriculture.

Traces of rig and furrow cultivation strips can be seen in the hills high above Bonaly, on land that has now reverted to rough-grazing.

These industries stood on the banks of the Bonaly Burn, which was used as a power-source, a supply of water and for carrying away waste.

After several changes of ownership in the 17th century, Bonaly was eventually bought in 1700 by Sir John Foulis of Woodhall.

Sir John's Account Book (1671–1707) contains frequent mentions of Bonaly, of the business he did there and of the rents he received from his tenants in the village.

The process of enclosure resulted in the disappearance of the small strips of land cultivated by tenant farmers as these were re-arranged into larger and more productive fields, surrounded by newly planted hedgerows.

Sir John Foulis was keen to improve his lands and, as well as enclosing existing farmland, brought areas of moorland under cultivation.

Whilst the new farming methods were more productive, they required less labour and the village of Bonaly is likely to have declined as farmers left to seek other employment.

In the 18th century, the northern portion of Bonaly was acquired by James Gillespie, a Colinton merchant, mill-owner and philanthropist.

In his own words he: ...began by an annual lease of a few square yards and a scarcely habitable farm-house but, realizing the profanations of Auburn, I have destroyed a village, and erected a tower, and reached the dignity of a twenty-acred laird.

Enclosure had lessened the demand for agricultural labour and the small-scale industries on the Bonaly Burn would have been unable to compete with the larger and more efficient mills being established elsewhere, particularly on the Water of Leith.

[14] This began to change during the early 20th century, due to the rapid expansion of Colinton as an Edinburgh commuter suburb.

In 1959, house-builders Mactaggart and Mickel commenced large-scale housing development on the land adjacent to Bonaly Farm – formerly known as the East Field.

The new school at Bonaly was, however, never large enough to accommodate all the pupils and the Thorburn Road premises were re-opened as an annex for use by nursery and infant classes.

Bonaly Tower was the venue for frequent meetings of the 'Friday Club', a group of leading Edinburgh literati, which were hosted by Lord Cockburn.

Bonaly Outdoor Centre has two large camping fields, with capacity for over two hundred campers, and two buildings providing indoor accommodation.

Within the grounds of the Outdoor Centre is a stone-built bathing pool, naturally fed by the waters of the Dean Burn.

The natural catchment has been augmented by catch-drains laid out across the hillside to the south-west, which act to divert spring and rain-water into the reservoir.

Proposals exist to manage the water levels in the reservoir so that feeding and breeding opportunities for wildlife are maximised.