East of Edinburgh and North Berwick lies the beautiful East Lothian and further on, the Scottish Borders.
As everywhere in Scotland there is so much to see and explore, it would probably fill multiple blogs.
Here now only a few of my highlights from the last two trips to Scotland.
A short 5 kilometers east of North Berwick and directly opposite from Bass Rock lies Tantallon castle.
A formidable half ruin of a mid-14th-century fortress, unique for it's defense, as there is only one single wall protecting it on the land side.
The other three sides are protected by steep cliffs dropping down to the sea.
Parts of the castle are in really good condition, considering the age, and visitors can still safely climb up some of the towers and upper walkways.
Some, one only can look at...
Here a view towards the castle from Seacliff Beach, showing the cliff location. The Royal Navy maintained a top secret research station here during World War 1.
Seacliff Beach itself is a hidden gem on the East Lothian Coast. Passing through a coin operated barrier, visitors reach a secluded beach. To the west two surprises await. The first is the amazing view of the castle as mentioned above, the second is an incredibly tiny harbour that has been carved out of the rocks, known as Scottlands smallest harbour.
The entry channel to the harbor is only 3 meters wide, blasted out of the sandstone in 1890 with a steam engine and compressed air!
The tiny harbor now gets rarely used for boats but more for diving and dive training instead.
Straight ahead, looking North, one has a formidable view towards Bass Rock,
and to the West, St. Baldred's boat, which is not really a boat but a dangerous rocky promontory, marked with a stone beacon surmounted by a cross. It is named after St. Baldred, an Irish Monk who has lived in this area in the 700th century.
I have to be honest, this next spot I would have missed wouldn't it have been for the bright yellow canola fields.
White Kirk, named after it's once white church, used to be on the pilgrims route from St, Andrews to Santiago de Compostela. It featured a holy well that unfortunately ran dry in the 19th century, due to agriculture intervention.
One of my favorite spots, St. Abbs, a small fishing village, lies further east in the Scottish Borders.
I discovered this gem while searching for the lighthouse on St. Abbs Head.
From the village leads a bautifully rugged way to the light house.
St. Abbs is named after Æbbe, an abbess and noblewoman who later became a saint!
St. Abbs Head Lighthouse
A short walk north of the lighthouse, in a secluded bay, lies Pettico Wick Bay Abbs Rock. This bay provides a natural trap for salmon as they swim down the coast and the jetty was build to provide a landing spot for the fishing boats supplying the lighthouse.
On the way back to St. Abbs, I chose the inland path, following Mire Loch...ad'mire'ing the Scottish light!
Farther south into the Scottish Borders one can find the ancient walls of Melrose Abbey
Founded by Cistercian monks in the 1100s as a quiet place of prayer, this monastery became one of Scotlands wealthiest and most significant medieval abbeys.
Historic Environment Scotland does an amazing deed in keeping the abbey in shape.
My favorite part of course is the bagpipe playing pig...only in Scotland!
But the headstone are also to die for ;-)
On the way back to North Berwick and back in East Lothian, Preston Mills is not to be missed!
Famous now as one of the locations the Outlander series has been filmed, this mill offers a view into the milling history. Built in the 16th century the mill, powered by the river Tyne,was used until 1959 to produce oatmeal.
As I visited the inside of the mill, featuring the machinery of the last water driven mill in Scotland, was unfortunately already closed for the season. All the more reason to come back.
However, the sheer historic beauty of the mill was overwhelming by itself!
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