This walk is approximately 8 miles (13 km) and should take approximately 3 to 4 hours. There is an excellent and regular train service between North Queensferry (i.e. the Rail Bridge) and Aberdour.
We start our trip in the shadow of the famous Forth Bridges. The Forth Bridge, completed in 1890, carries rail traffic into North Queensferry station and is a spectacular sight at night when it is floodlit. In daylight it is no less impressive and its bright red colour becomes apparent. This colour is a testament to the workmen who have a never-ending job to keep the bridge in good condition. The 7,000 gallons of paint required per year were specially produced for the project and have been supplied by the same firm since the Bridge was built.
The Forth Road Bridge is a younger and smaller cousin, being completed in 1964 and spanning a slightly shorter distance of 1.5 miles. It is 160m high and if you chose to walk across it into the Kingdom you might feel it swaying - up to a maximum of almost 7 metres!. The views from the bridge are varied and impressive - a time when 360 degree vision is highly desirable.
The coastal path starts near the station and an information sign is posted. However, don't be in too much to a hurry to leave North Queensferry itself since there are fine views here too, such as the unusual one between the Bridge's "legs". There are also other points of interest, the most modern of these is Deep Sea World, housing the world's largest aquarium inside a converted 18th century quarry. Some of the buildings in the village date from the 17th century but North Queensferry is much older; it was an important crossing point from Fife to the Lothians several centuries earlier. The name comes from Margaret, Queen of Malcolm III (Canmore) who fostered it as a crossing point so that people could visit the Catholic shrines at Dunfermline and St. Andrews. In the summer months it is possible to sail from North Queensferry to Inchcolm and its abbey which will be described later. There are a series of wells in North Queensferry which once provided water for travellers (men and horses alike). These are found near the start of the coastal walk. One of them has a three-cornered shape and is a 1816 monument to the battle of Waterloo. The island seen offshore, supporting one of the Bridge's legs, is Inchgarvie. This tiny island has had military importance since the Battle of Athelstanesford in 832 A.D. and was still in use as the site of a defensive battery in the second world war. This gun emplacement protected both the Bridge and the naval dockyard which can be seen just upstream at Rosyth.
Taking the coastal path we leave North Queensferry and head eastwards to the quiet bay of Port Laing. This was not always so deserted - the untidy remains of an army barracks can be seen. More barracks and gun batteries can be seen on the hill above the crags. This hill is Carlingnose, "Carlin" being the Scots name for an old woman thought to be a witch. However the name probably derives from the shape of the rock formations rather than anything more sinister. No need to be disappointed though, this is only our first encounter with witches/carlings in Fife and there are several others! Continuing onwards round the point the path swings back into Inverkeithing's Inner Bay with West Ness pier at our side. Ahead there is the paper mills and shipbreakers yard.
After approximately 45 minutes (allowing for dawdling and investigation of the points of interest) we come to the town of Inverkeithing. The continuation of the coastal path is signposted from near the town sign but, although not strictly part of the coastal walk, Inverkeithing is worth a look with its many medieval buildings and fine mercat cross. Walking right, up the slope, takes us into the town. There is a small museum in the "Old Hospitium of the Grey Friars", the only building left of a monastery. It is an attractive stone building showing arched windows and crowstep gables. A Victorian lamppost stands at the corner. On Bank Street there is a 16th century mercat cross incorporating a sundial although this is not its original site (it has had to give way to traffic at the tollbooth).
A red cinder track leaves Inverkeithing, heading along the shore and through disused quarries - look back for a good view of the Bridge. Continuing onwards is the small St. David's Bay and around the point, the path runs past Letham Wood. Ahead lie the houses of Dalgety Bay a fairly modern development. At the eastern edge of the town is Donibristle chapel where nine Earls of Moray are buried. You can walk round the bay on the shoreline depending on the tides and many types of wading birds can be seen. St Briget's Kirk sits alongside the shore, the first record of a kirk being here is in 1178 but there was probably one even earlier. The kirk was granted to the Abbey of Inchcolm by William the Lion. Each year a service is held here even though the church is in ruins with the roof collapsed. After the reformation, local lords built "Laird's Lofts" (private side wings). The most comfortable of these was the Seton loft and this can still be reached by a winding stair. There are many interesting grave stones in the kirk and kirkyard including some from the 17th century with skull and crossbones or craft symbols like tailor's scissors. The eastern end of the kirkyard has a Mort house where mourners used to keep watch on their deceased relatives to prevent grave robbers taking the bodies.
Further along the coast is Braefoot Plantation on the side of Braefoot point and round this, a bay of the same name. The oil terminal at Braefoot Bay prevents us from following the coast all the way from Dalgety Bay to Aberdour. So we have a short diversion inland to make our way around the terminal, which was built at the end of the 1970s. The road we take through the plantation has some interesting relics from the First and Second World Wars - army defences, ammunition dumps and look-out posts. At low tide, circling round the terminal and coming back to the shore allows a visit to Monk's Cave which looks across Mortimer's Deep to the oil terminal and the much more attractive island of Inchcolm. The cave is not really a true cave but was built by the monks of Inchcolm to hold their supplies. The coast can be followed from here at low tide only by scrambling over the rocks, alternatively follow the path through the golf course. This path goes through St. Colme estate and towards the Bell Rock. Make sure you will not be cut off by the tide and head along the shore past the offshore rocks and onto the Golden Sands from here the road leads to Aberdour proper.
Off the coast at Braefoot Bay lies the island of Inchcolm named after St. Columba who was thought to have lived here in the 6th century. Although not strictly part of the coastal walk I would strongly recommend this as a detour if time will allow. The monastery dates back to 1123, founded by Alexander III after he was rescued and sheltered here by a hermit when the King's boat capsized during a storm. The hermit's cell still exists. Alexander died before the priory could be built and his son, David was the work completed. Since then it has has a turbulent history: it was raided several times by the English and by pirates. The abbey has also been set on fire and was then finally ruined during the reformation, but it is still one of the most impressive abbey ruin in Scotland and has been restored in recent times. It is possible to climb the tower to the top floor doocot and there is also part of a 13th century mural depicting a procession of monks (sadly headless) with censers. The island itself has a colourful history being used as a hospital, quarantine station and fort. Several skeletons have been discovered, including one standing upright inside a wall of the Abbots House! The water off the shore at Inchcolm is known as Mortemeris Deep. The name is believed to originate from William de Mortimer, a medieval Lord of Aberdour who upset the monks of Inchcolm so much that they murdered him and dropped his body in the deep waters hereabouts.
Aberdour was originally two villages, on different estates, separated by the Dour Burn. The 14th century castle is well worth a visit, as is St Fillan's Church which is even older (both signposted). Most of the castle is in ruins except the defensive keep which, ironically, is also the oldest part. Originally, a moat and drawbridge would have been present too. The lands were granted to the Earl of Moray by Robert the Bruce in 1325 who then sold them on to Sir William Douglas in 1342, later serving as home to the Douglas Earls of Morton. There is a sundial set into the south wall and another in the grounds (moved from Aberdour house after a fire). Also in the grounds is a remarkably preserved and very rare beehive doocot. The church is the first of many marks that the Celtic St Fillan has left on this ancient coast line and dates to 1123 at least. The west wall has a Leper's Squint, a narrow window through which "lepers" could watch the service. The stone in front of the window remembers the pilgrims who came to St. Fillan's for the healing well but this is long since lost. The walls of the church look tiny, compared to the roof, because several tons of soil were dumped on the graveyard half burying them.
Last updated November 15, 1999
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