At St Abbs we quickly made our way to the point where we had finished the last walk and headed along the high street towards the cliffs and back on to the Berwickshire Coastal Path. The path offers two choices: take the route going inland to visit the village of Coldingham or stick to the cliff route over St Abbs Haven, which was the route we took along a surfaced path.
At three to four miles, depending on starting and ending points, St Abbs to Eyemouth is, in my opinion, one of the prettiest walks on the East Coast of Scotland. For us it was unfinished business, after we had to abandon our last walk when I acquired serious foot blisters on the soles of my feet. For Joanna in particular it had been galling to leave the field when the Scottish / English border was only about twenty miles away. This stage and the next from Eyemouth to Berwick upon Tweed would finally see us on English soil. To get to the start line for tonight's short walk, we left Kirriemuir at midday Friday and drove to Berwick upon Tweed where we parked the car on a street that lay on the bus route to St Abbs. The local bus service took about forty-five minutes and that did not seem particularly long. At St Abbs we quickly made our way to the point where we had finished the last walk and headed along the high street towards the cliffs and back on to the Berwickshire Coastal Path. The path offers two choices: take the route going inland to visit the village of Coldingham or stick to the cliff route over St Abbs Haven, which was the route we took along a surfaced path. From the cliffs there are clear views over to the rock formation known as the Ebb Carrs. The location is popular with divers as there are a couple of wrecks on the sea floor accessible for investigation. The wrecks include the ‘Vigilant’, an Eyemouth trawler that ploughed into the rocks on 30th September 1976 and, the ‘Alfred Earlandson’, a steamship that ran aground in fog on 2nd October 1907 with the loss of all hands. It is a short hop, skip and a jump along the cliffs from St Abbs, formerly known as Coldingham Shore, to Coldingham Bay and beach, which is popular with surfers. The village of Coldingham lies nearby, back off the shore. We were walking in the early evening and at the start of the walk the late sunshine added a golden hue to the land and seascape that we took time to stop and admire. Dropping down to the beach at Coldingham via steep steps, we enjoyed a leisurely walk along the edge of the sea, taking time to admire the fine set of beach huts sitting on the shore. The glass house seen just above the huts and built on the site of a previous beach hut, has been controversial locally, seen as being out of character with the local area. It is currently on the market for a wee £1.25 million. Take a wee look at the link and see how the other live. Look out the penny jar if you would like a wee pied-a-terre with sea views! At the end of Coldingham Bay we stayed close to the water line approaching Linkim Shore. The bay here is where large sailing ships, when we had them, waited for wind and tide to take them safely into Eyemouth Harbour, just around the headland. A sand and pebble beach, there are interesting rock pools here that would engage children (and adults) for hours. All along the St Abbs to Eyemouth coastline there are beautiful red sandstone cliffs and on the shore numerous sea stacks. While not as dramatic or as high as the cliffs approaching St Abbs from the north, they have a quietly stated grandeur of their own. At the end of the shore we moved back up again to the low cliff-top for the final mile in to Eyemouth. The grassy path offered good views back towards Coldingham Bay. Hidden among the grass verges we found wild orchids growing. I don't know what is about orchids but whenever you find them it feels as if you have found something very special. As we crossed the Linkip Shore, the sea stack and headland at Linkim Kip were dramatic against the southeastern skyline. Up and over the cliff just above the point known as 'Hairy Ness' and we were soon dropping down on to the beach at Eyemouth where we felt able to allow ourselves to think of the fish supper and mushie peas awaiting us in the town.
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