Thorter Burn Falls (East Lothian’s secret waterfall)
First, a wee word of warning… this one is not for the faint-hearted! Older kids with experience of hiking and an adventurous nature will absolutely love it, but I strongly recommend you leave the little ones at home (although this is also a fantastic walk for the furry babies!). I became aware of the existence of these falls through extensive online research into places worth exploring in East Lothian. It was very difficult to ascertain the exact location, or specific instructions of how to get so I very much consider this to be a hidden gem of our beautiful county, and and as much as it is spectacular in the way that all waterfalls are- it is even more special for the challenge and adventure required to visit it. If you didn’t know how to get there, this would be very difficult place to stumble across- hense I have graced it with the title it of East Lothians secret waterfall!
Getting to the start of the walk is a bit of a challenge in itself- prepare yourself for single lane roads, frequently blocked by farm vehicles, steep inclines and blind bends galore- I think I tooted my horn about 20 times en route! The easiest place to park for a short walk to the falls is at StoneyPath Tower near to Garvald- this lovingly restored castle is at times open to the public and has a small car park at the very end of a farm track, however, on the occasions that I have visited, this car park has been chained off resulting in a sketchy reversing manoeuvre (always something I would rather avoid in my long wheel base van!) and I have parked next to the steading with no hassle from anyone.
Just before you reach Stoneypath Tower a small marked footpath leads downhill into a wooded glen. Follow this path and you will find yourself immersed in trees and following a quaint windy burn in the middle of a wooded valley. Stay on this main path and you will cross a couple of sturdy green bridges. A short distance after the second of these, you must veer off the main path and head left (and up!)- a steep climb, which on the date of our adventure, an uncharacteristically mild November day, was carpeted with with a thick layer crispy brown and orange autumn leaves that rustled underfoot as I scrambled up the almost-vertical bank assuring my less-than-convinced hubby that ‘yes I am pretty sure this is the right way...!
The bridges and pathways through to the woods
At the top of the bank is a farmers field, complete with a perimeter of new, sturdy BARBED WIRE-topped fencing. A herd of cows observed us, and we them, our little adventurer mounted safely on his Daddys back taking great delight in pointing and shouting “MOOOOOOO!”. If you were to hop this fence and head straight across this field in the direction of a gate visible directly opposite, you would be taking a significant short cut to our destination, but, not only did I get the impression that the farmer was well aware of this (hense his new shiny, and spiky fence!), also doing this would take so much away from the crazy adventure awaiting you on the ‘fun side’ of the fence!
The aim here is to therefore turn left and skirt the perimeter of the field to reach afore-mentioned gate from this side. This is where the walk gets really fun! There is a path to be followed all the way but essentially be aware that you are going to be walking just around the top of a pretty steep gorge. The path is narrow and rough, and scattered with obstacles likening the route to some sort of military assault course. Overhanging branches, landslips and fallen trees make this a challenging route to attempt with a baby on board- At one point we had to literally crawl on hands and knees through the undergrowth to avoid a exceptionally low hanging branch flanked by the fence on one side and a vertical drop on the other. Obviously, this is great fun if you are a weirdo like me and are into this sort of thing... not so much for my arguably more sensible husband who may or may not have used a few ‘colourful’ words at this point!
Note- steep gorge and missing sock!
Both photos above are actually heading back the way so the steep gorge is on the right of the photo and the cow field on the left
Anyhoo, keep following the crazy path and eventually it starts to head downhill towards an overgrown grassy area of land that was once fenced off- you can now step over the rusty remains of the fence and then bear left safely down a much less steep bank towards the burn. Here you will find the worlds ‘sketchiest’ looking bridge! Once chunky, sturdy planks mounted on metal railings have started to rot away and to cross you must be prepared to take a couple of slimy ‘leaps of faith’. Thankfully it is not high over the water which is nothing intimidating in itself. I let Hubs attempt the tretcherous crossing first before breaking to him the news that I had been sneakily keeping a secret right until this point... My beloved waterfall can only be reached by wading through the river and following it upsteam- it is very difficult to reach from any other angle. “F*ck that!” was the (previously anticipated) response from Hubs, who advised that he was going to follow the path that leads on from once you cross the bridge. “Fine, I shouted up to him” as I started my stumble from boulder to boulder, initially attempting to avoid the inevitable full dunking that would naturally follow “See if you can find it from above!”...
Hubs crossing the bridge before I turned right and scrambled upstream
I had been counting on my trusty furry protector Tig to keep me company at this point, to assist me in not drowning, and to generally to keep me company, but the wee b*gger decided to go off with Hubs instead so I was solo on my final approach. The falls are actually only 100 yards or so from the bridge but you cant see them from there. Once they came into view, I instantly knew the adventure had been worth it! This is not a tourist destination, the views are obstructed by fallen trees and debris from recent storms... but it is certainly a ‘proper waterfall’ and to stand in front of it, soaked through with all sorts or ‘tree bits’ in your messy hair, is to feel completely immersed in nature. There is nothing quite like the sound of cascading water and here, invisible from buildings and roads there is nothing else... honestly, (and I am not really one for this sort of thing) it really was almost spiritual.
Thorter Burns Falls
As I stood there triumphant in my success at achieving my goal, the sound of scurrying and rustling alerted me to the re-emergence of my Tiggy who had also come to appreciate the awesomeness of this place. “I found it!!!!” I shouted triumphantly- hubs was nowhere to be seen but I was confident he was near. I stayed a few moments more to take some photos and just appreciate being alive, before heading back through the river, which was only ever really up to my knees and not overly fast-flowing, to find Hubs and the wee one waiting for me back at the crazy bridge.
We swapped over the babba and it was my turn to carry him, ducking and diving our way back the way we had come. Literally sliding on my bum, waste deep in the dry brown leaves to get down the final steep bank back to the main track. Another one ticked off the East Lothian bucket list!