Picture of Seacliff
Caption: SEACLIFF
Picture of Seacliff
Caption: Monday 22 July, and the first day of our week’s holiday. It was really warm, really windy, and really humid - too warm for a long walk with the lads, but we wanted to get outside, so we drove down the coast to Seacliff.
Picture of Seacliff
Picture of Seacliff
Picture of Seacliff
Caption: Seacliff is a small beach outside North Berwick, known for its views towards Bass Rock and Tantallon Castle. It’s a sheltered beach - perfect for an easy stroll and a paddle on a warm day.
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Caption: If you head to the western end of the beach at low tide, as it was on Monday, you can walk out over the rocks for a fantastic view towards the ruins of Tantallon Castle.
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Caption: Bass Rock is home to over 150,000 gannets at the peak of the season - their droppings give the volcanic rock its white appearance. The gannets spend most of the year on the rock, until the end of October when they set out their long journey south. The Bass Rock Lighthouse was built in 1902.
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Picture of North Berwick
Picture of North Berwick
Caption: There’s also a tiny harbour, which, to be honest, we hadn’t seen until this visit. It’s claimed to be Scotland’s smallest harbour, and it was carved out of the rocks in 1890 by Andrew Laidley, who was the laird and owner of Seacliff Estate at the time. Just incredible.
Picture of North Berwick
Video of North Berwick
Picture of North Berwick
Caption: Tantallon Castle dates from the mid-14th century when it was the stronghold of the Douglas family. The castle was besieged three times - in 1491, 1528, and finally by Oliver Cromwell’s army in 1651, when the castle was badly damaged and subsequently abandoned. You can visit the ruins, which are in the care of Historic Environment Scotland. This is on my to-do list...
Picture of North Berwick
Video of North Berwick
Picture of North Berwick
Caption: a few things to note Seacliff is a private beach, with a £3 charge at the barrier at the start of the woodland drive that leads here. I mention this as if you’re thinking of visiting, it would be frustrating to get to this spot and realise that you don’t have change!
Picture of North Berwick
Caption: Can you see the lighthouse?
Picture of North Berwick
Picture of North Berwick
Picture of North Berwick
Caption: also ...check the tide times. On our first visit here a few years back, we paid, parked, and walked along the short sandy path that leads to the beach… only to find waves crashing towards us and absolutely no beach. Not the best trip! I’d recommend the My Tide Times Pro app - this one was recommended by a friend and we use it all the time now on our coastal walks.
Picture of North Berwick
Picture of North Berwick
Caption: Can you imagine that
this harbour was carved
from the rock?
Picture of North Berwick
Picture of North Berwick
Picture of North Berwick
Picture of North Berwick
Picture of North Berwick
Picture of North Berwick
Caption: Seacliff, East Lothian, Scotland Monday 22 July
