The great novelist wrote "I think I never saw anything so beautiful" about the view of the Pentland Hills from Leadburn in Midlothian.

Now protesters fighting plans to build 330ft-high wind turbines at the site are claiming the author as one of their own.

They say the views could be lost forever if plans for a wind farm at Auchencorth Moss are given the go-ahead by Midlothian Council.

The development, planned by German energy conglomerate E.ON UK, would see 18 of the wind turbines erected at the beauty spot.

Protest group Penicuik Environmental Protection Association (PEPA) said the wind farm - which would be built on one of Scotland's few remaining raised peat bogs - would damage the site and destroy the views. It also claimed the turbines would have a negligible impact on efforts to tackle carbon dioxide emissions.

In his diaries, Sir Walter Scott, who often travelled between the Capital and his Borders home in the early 19th century, said: "I think I never saw anything more beautiful than the ridge of Carnethy against a clear frosty sky with its peaks and varied slopes.

"The hills glowed like purple amethyst, the sky glowed topaz and vermilion colours. I never saw a finer screen than Pentland considering it is neither rocky nor elevated."

John Thomson, spokesman for PEPA, said: "This is one of the few areas in the UK that is totally unspoilt. The view from Leadburn over the Pentland Hills is almost entirely clear from modern infrastructure like telephone cables, power lines and so on.

"This is why we feel so strongly about the positioning of the wind farm there."

Fellow protester Professor Tony Trewavas said: "As Scott said, you can see the outline of the ridge clearly. The Pentlands are a magnificent group of hills. Anything that obscures the landscape is bound to be to the detriment of Midlothian.

E.ON UK plans to submit a planning application to Midlothian Council before the end of the year.

Construction work on the scheme, which would be situated on a country estate owned by Sir Robert Clerk, will start next year if planners give it the green light.

Gillian Bishop, of national wind farm protest group Views from Scotland, added: "

People have been building the odd windmill for years, but there's a difference between that and building huge concrete foundations for these turbines."

Friends of the Earth Scotland's chief executive, Duncan McLaren, said: "Everyone is entitled to voice their opinion and that is exactly what we'd encourage anyone in the area to do with respect to this application.

"However, objecting to wind farms without offering alternative solutions to cut emissions does no one any favours."

A spokeswoman for E.ON UK said: "We understand that everybody is entitled to their opinion, but we have undertaken considerable research into the area and we strongly believe it to be a stable site for a wind farm, which could not only generate green electricity for 22,000 homes, but also help Scotland meet its 18 per cent target for green generation in Scotland by 2010."