East Linton to Hailes Castle (Riverside Walk)

Having already walked a couple of middle sections along this roughly 8 mile riverside ramble from East Linton to Haddington, I have been keen for some time to walk the start and finish sections, which weirdly, despite the East Linton stretch actually being closest to where I live, and easiest to access parking-wise, I had never actually done. The walk starts right at the southern end of East Linton where a T-juction bears off to the left to cross the little bridge, you need to turn right and the walkway is signposted ‘River Tyne Path’ just there. There are a few parking spaces dotted about here if you don’t fancy a wee daunder down the village high street. As you head down to the river you go though some big metal gates which advise that you are passing through private property at this point. Round the corner, we were delighted to be greeted by a giant painted Hare on full view in the garden. In 2021 10 of these colourful, giant lapins were commissioned to be painted by local artists and put on display across North Berwick- we had such fun in the summer, following the map of their various locations and choosing our favourites! Each hare was eventually auctioned off to raise money for Leuchie House- a local respite centre and very worthy cause! In fact, in a strange twist of fate I actually ‘own’ a tiny share in one hare which has pride of place in the North Berwick Country Park- it was painted by a neighbour’s daughter and bought back by her mum following a local crowd-funding effort and placed in the popular dog-walking location for everyone in North Berwick to enjoy- I walk my own dogs past that one regularly and it always makes me smile, so to discover another one in it’s ‘forever home’ was something of a treat (and the start of a new family game of ‘find the hares!)’! Anyhow, I digress…

After you pass under the enormous concrete road-bridge right at the start of the path, under which it is mandatory to make as many random noises as possible in order to fully appreciate the excellent acoustic properties(!) it is an extremely peaceful trail. There is an abundance of wild flowers and nature- birdsong fills the air, and on this cool but sunny autumnal day it was an absolute treat to dawdle along the path at the speed of a nearly-two year old who must stop to feel every stone/fencepost, point at every flower head, and randomly hurl pebbles plucked from the path in the general direction of the water. On an online blog once I saw the scenery here described as ‘pleasent but undramatic’ I could agree I suppose,but actually I think I would like to argue that this is perhaps unfairly based on comparison- I suppose I have absolutely seen more ‘dramatic’ scenery in the cairngorms/Glencoe for example, but through the eyes of a mother watching her toddler meander along a narrow path, flanked by green and pink taller than him, with the dancing light of the river to my left and nature itself as far as the eye can see, I would simply say- it’s a truly lovely place to be.

The walkway along the river is a narrow path surrounded by thick vegetation, and all is very well maintained. On the right you can see the boundries of enormous ‘dream’ gardens and much of our chatter revolved around fantasies of chasing our kids around them at dinner time, growing vegetables, rearing chickens and whiling away our days laying reading in a hammock between the trees- Maybe one day… On our left the river glistening in the sun, flanked on the other side by huge green banks, the edges of fields where an occasional sheep could be spotted and the ruins of an old farmhouse/shephards hut made from weathered red brick and crumbling, no doubt with many stories to tell! This place is fantastic for dogs, although we met very few people or dogs, we were able to keep ours off the lead for the whole walk. There is nowhere for them to go but into the river every now and again where previous dogs/wildlife/adventurous wild swimmers have trodden paths down to the waters edge. The river is not so fast-flowing that I ever had concerns for them, and if you have a ‘swimmer’ there are plenty of perfect spots for that, and the banks are never so steep that you need worry about them not being able to get out. Our biggest concern was being knocked down by one of our lunatics as they chased each other up and down, passing us on the narrow path- poor Ozzy definitely took a few penalties and had to be peeled off the ground a couple of times with ‘mucky paws’ of his own (boots are a must here)!’

Continuing our slow toddler-paced amble we followed the path up and down some earthy, but again well maintained steps following the riverside terrain. There’s a sturdy wooden handrail here and the steps are not too steep, but do be aware that there is no alternative option if stairs are not for you. If you visit in autumn, make sure not to miss out on the abundance of conkers from the huge, towering horse-chestnut trees overhead- we definitely salvaged some ‘absolute winners!’ and I very much look forward to thrashing my kids- read ‘teach them the simple delights of an old childhood pastime of mine’... And also pause to note how many of these have fallen into the river and how clear the water is that you can see them all down there, destined to bumble downstream possibly all the way to the Forth!

Shortly after this section the path passes underneath a huge concrete bridge, over which runs the A1. It is an imposing feauture and the noise of heavy traffic admittedly pollutes the air here, but it is also oddly beautiful and we took a few moments to watch the lorries and to simply appreciate what a feat of engineering it must have been to build…

After this, the path opens up slightly as you proceed along the boundry of a large crop field. Luckily for us this was still to be ploughed and the dogs delighted in stretching their legs among the autumn stubble. 100m or so from the bridge is a small clearing with a wooden bench and what looks like an odd ‘stile’ to nowhere- perhaps remaining from a time when the bank river was fenced off. Here you appear to stumble on a small plantation of mixed trees. There appear to be paths weaving their way throughout the trees at this point but, after a brief photo op we remained on the main path which continues onward along the riverbank. Soon we spotted green, yellow and red apples at our feet and looked upwards to observe the biggest native apple-tree I have ever seen! And it was absolutely laden with apples! Now, obviously there was no way we were going to pass by this absolute unexpected lottery-win (it is 2022 afterall- the cost of living is HIGH!) but as apple thieves we had not come prepared! So with much hilarity I shimmied my way up a couple of branches and gave the tree a good ol’ shake! To Ozzy’s delight (now in a backpack attached to Hubs) it rained apples, which were stuffed into every available vessel for carting home as a souvenir for the rest of the gang. Ozzy was given a ‘num-num’ which he nibbled and carried for the rest of the walk- jacket hood now full of apples- the poor wee soul!

A different trip with the whole gang, at the clearing with the bench

Maybe 50m or so further on, is a small wooden footbridge with an enchanting signpost directing you over it to Hailes Castle and a Standing Stone (which- for the record, at the time of writing, I have never been able to find!) We crossed here and headed straight up the track, ignoring a small gap in a stone wall where a path veers off to the right- this probably leads you down to the riverbank at the front of Hailes castle but we were unsure how easily it would be to progress from there as we knew the castle was currently inaccessable due to structural works. The path leads you to a minor single-track road down which you need turn right and walk along for 50 yards or so to a small parking layby and the entrance to Hailes Castle.

The Castle itself is an absolute treasure of East Lothian- we have spent many family afternoons here, though it is in ruins, a fair amount of the structure still remains and you can explore (for free!) several roofless rooms, cellars, and staircases and peer down into gated pits which I can only imagine were the dungeons- always good as a threat to an impertinent child! The grounds include an area of grass which is full of mounds (remnants of old outbuildings) and it has become a family tradition to engage in a game of (parent-monitored) hide and seek here, and this has always been so joyful that now the place has a really special feel- it is one of our family ‘happy’ places. If you do visit with young children you do need to be aware that there are some big old windows with very treacherous drops so I would definitely advise caution and constant supervision when exploring the ruins.

Unfortunately, on this occasion the castle was closed for some structural work so we took a little wander around the woods to the left within the grounds instead. Here, the dogs stumbled on and delighted in chasing an unsuspected pheasant (he escaped, no worse for wear!)- the paths throughout the woods are steep and mildly adventurous, from the bottom you are able to walk out to the front side and stand underneath the castle- an impressive view of a once impressive fortification.

This was our turning point that day, as our bellies were telling us it was lunch time and you can only survive on foraged apples for so long! There are however, many options from here if you fancy a longer walk. You can cross the road directly at the entrance gate to Hailes Castle and follow a footpath that leads directly to Trapain Law which in itself is a must-visit location of East Lothian, or you can cross back over the bridge and continue onwards down the banks of the river all the way to Haddington if you desire. We re-traced our steps and headed back to East Linton the way we had come now laden with conkers and apples and an exhausted toddler. Obviously we made one last shot at the 'lottery’ tree- this time with a large stick primed to “get the good ones!” from up at the top.

We will definitely be back here, next time with the older ones, several bags(!), and picnic lunch (or at least a flask of tea). For this one, allow a couple of hours- (give or take- depending on the presence of stone throwing, fence licking toddler, and also determination of your apple-thieving tendencies!)

Thorter Burn Falls (East Lothian’s secret waterfall)