An East Lothian Day Out 2

We are in Scotland for a week staying at Seton Sands, Longniddry, where we have a nicely appointed static caravan. Today we met up with Kirsty and David and took a trip to Dunbar, North Berwick and Aberlady Bay Nature Reserve.

Here are some photos.

Dunbar

Kirsty and David joined us at our holiday home for coffee before we set off to Dunbar. We parked outside Lauderdale Park and headed for the harbours. The ruins of Dunbar Castle sit at the entrance to Victoria harbour.

I liked these steps adorned with names of the areas used in the shipping forecast.

Looking south-east from the Dunbar Battery.

We passed a plaque commemorating Black Agnes, Countess of Dunbar.

She was born in 1312, the daughter of Robert the Bruce’s nephew, Thomas Randolph, and married to the 9th Earl of Moray. In 1337 only Agnes and a few men were residing in the castle when the English set out to capture it.  During a five-month siege beginning in January 1338, Black Agnes and her small garrison successfully defended the castle against repeated English attacks, earning her a lasting place in Scottish history.

This is the town house museum. We didn't visit that...

..but we did visit the John Muir Birthplace museum.

John Muir is celebrated as a pioneer of conservation. His life and work has inspired people all over the world. He was a best selling writer, a renowned explorer and mountaineer. He was an inventor, a respected botanist, geologist and glaciologist. He was a farmer and an artist. The museum tells the whole story of this remarkable man's life and legacy in the house where he was born.  It was fascinating and inspiring. For example, he wanted to visit South America so he went for a walk... from Wisconsin to Florida - about 1000 miles. Read about it here.

North Berwick

Kirsty had told me to be sure to look out for some North Berwick gin. Well we tried visiting the distillery on Tuesday, arriving at 3:30 to see the notice on the door saying it was open until 4pm, but it was all locked up. We tried again today, arriving about the same time, but with the same result. So when, as we passed it, Kirsty and David checked into their campsite - Tantallon Caravan Park (but without their camper van which was at Seton Sands) they asked where you could get ithe. They were told it could be found at Lockett Bros in North Berwick. So, as it was on our way back, we stopped off in North Berwick for a while to find it.

Yes they had it!

While we were there we noticed a lot of yachts at sea. Here they are coming back in.

It turned out to be the 2026 Noble Marine UK Musto Skiff Nationals competition.

Here is someone pulling their boat back on land.

Aberlady Bay

On our way back to Seton Sands, we stopped to visit Aberlady Bay Nature Reserve, the UK's first designated Nature Reserve, founded in 1952, a site beloved of John Muir. It is a haven for wildlife

A curlew.

The bridge.

There are deer here.

In the distance we could just about make out the Lomond Hills.

Another roe deer.

We passed by the edge of Gullane 2 golf course. There are links courses all along this coast. Muirfield is nearby.

The paths were confusing (the different resolution OS maps couldn't agree) and we ended up retracing our route to avoid getting caught in any marshy areas. The deer was still here.

The tide is quite well out and the birds were enjoying the mudflats.

The sun is getting low now.

We returned to Seton Sands for pizza and fish and chips before Kirsty and David headed off in Mario to their campsite. Another lovely day out! Thank-you Kirsty and David for joining us.

You can see more of my photos here on Flickr.

Tomorrow: The Ruby Wedding celebration.