Tyninghame Links

Tyninghame Links is a special little place and most people who live locally know this. Try to visit at ‘quieter’ times or you might struggle for a car parking space. The car park is run by the council and designated as one of their ‘coastal car parks’ so if you are not a permit holder, it will cost you £2.50 to park here all day- there is not really any alternative option (unless you fancy a much longer walk from the village of Tyninghame itself or from Binning Wood). There are multiple possibilities for exploring from the car park, essentially all paths lead to Ravensheugh Beach but there is a vast area of ancient woodland between you and there right now, with many quirky features, so it is really up to you to decide which path to take, and how much of that you want to explore first! Tyninghame is somewhere to come back to over and over again, for a whole new experience each time. I have been here many times but I am still discovering new ‘secret treasures’ each time I come.

Treasures of Tyninghame estate- there are so many quirky features like this to be found!

The car park offers two starting points so I am going to split this segment in two according to whether you turn left or right from here- hopefully it is easy enough to follow...

Route One- Turning right

Looking down the right-hand track from the car-park end.

At the end of the car park is an open entrance to a dirt track which heads immediately to the right in a straight line. Following this track for the half a mile or so that it runs, without turning off anywhere, is the most direct path to the beach. It will take you 15-20 minutes or so, is easy to follow and can be boggy in places. The path runs parallel to a field on the right for the first part, skirting the woodland to your left, before the field ends and the area woodland appears on your right also. 100 yards or so from the car park is a wooden gate to the left, with a ‘no camping’ sign and an obvious footpath. Taking this route will extend your walk through the woods by another 10-15mins and lead you past a wonderful tree with huge, smooth low branches that invite you to climb, and have been engraved by hundreds of climbers that have visited before you. You will also pass multiple old wrought iron gates and fencing that looks like it could be a throwback to when the woodland was managed as part of a big estate. It is worth the detour if you are a fan of getting ‘lost’ in the woods (metaphorically, not literally)- it is an easy path to follow and leads out onto the beach, just slightly further up than if you had stuck to the main path.

If you ignore this detour and proceed down the main path you will pass by some large concrete and brick structures, tank defences from WW2, just before the final approach to the beach. This is just a small sample of the war history on offer here- there are hundreds of tank blocks to be found along this stretch of coastline; they make for fun ‘giant stepping stones’, or climbing frames for little ones, and also for an interesting photo! As you emerge out of the woodland you will eventually find yourself on a rocky beach. Depending where the tide is, you might be able to walk out for miles on the rocky outcrop, dodging the disappointingly baron rock pools. Across from here, on a clear day you can see over to Dunbar, the beaches that skirt John Muir Country Park, and the cement works at Whitesands in the distance, pumping out white smoke like a cloud factory. On the right, you might be able to spot a cave of two carved into the cliff edge, and along from that, another semi-destroyed WW2 structure, now tumbling down, almost reclaimed by the sea. Obviously, I have explored this area extensively and would like to report that yet again, very disappointingly(!) I did not discover any pirate treasure, or discover a secret entrance leading to a ‘Goonies’-style adventure. Do let me know if you have more luck!!!

Tank defences on the approach to the beach

The concrete structure crumbling from the cliff

Sometimes, if I am short of time, it is enough just to come here and spend a bit of time watching the dogs run about as the sun reflects off the shallow pools of water, maybe sitting on a large piece of bark-stripped driftwood and building towers from stone pebbles with my littlest loves. I would recommend that you try to avoid the dried seaweed that lies further up from the shoreline, it is absolutely full of sandflies- one kick will send them buzzing around you like a tiny, angry storm cloud! Once you have spent enough time gathering your thoughts in the salty air, it is easy enough to retrace your steps and head back the way you came- just make sure to make a mental note of the ‘entrance point’ to the beach- there are a few of them and it would be easy to get disoriented if you picked the wrong one.

If you do fancy extending this walk however, turning left and remaining on the beach will lead you shortly to the stunning sandy expanse of Ravensheugh Sands. With undisturbed views out to the Bass rock and framed with golden dunes it really is a sight to behold, and if you are lucky enough, on a quiet day, you could find you have it all to yourself. It is a great spot for a sea-swim, or just to play about in the surf. As I touched on earlier, you might spot gaps in the dunes behind, and it is possible to re-enter the woods at these points and access a huge network of paths within- if you have a good mental sat-nav you should be able to navigate your way back to the main track, possibly linking up with the detour I mentioned earlier. If you stick to the path that tops the dunes, do keep your eyes peeled for a WW2 lookout post that you can actually climb inside if you are feeling adventurous- it is only a wee bit claustrophobic!

Looking over to the stunning Ravensheugh Sands

Route Two- turning left

From the car park exit, ignore the dirt road leading off to the right and instead pass through the pedestrian gap next to the gate directly in front of you and onto the dirt road that tracks off to the left. This is the starting point for a slightly longer, more challenging walk to Ravensheugh Sands, but one that takes in some stunning clifftop views and an abundance of fun features such as steep sand-dunes and rows upon rows of concrete tank blocks.

The initial part of this walk is on a wide dirt road with fields on either side. We once ‘acquired’ some fresh sprouts straight out from one of them, left over after the harvest, during that odd period of lockdown life where you had to stay local for ‘outdoor exercise’- I have fond memories of this as a home-schooling ‘field-trip’! When you reach a couple of gates and a turn in the road, follow the road round to the right (you might have to go round another gate through the pedestrian gap) and continue alongside the other edge of the field as the track continues straight uphill towards a large fenced off wooden hut. This is Ravensheugh Log Cabin, available to hire for weddings or parties- a quirky little place, all the more authentic for having no electricity. You used to be able to wander about the grounds and over the fence at the cliff edge for an amazing view out to sea, but I noticed on our latest visit, that this has all been closed off now, and signs invite you to turn left for the beach and right for the tank blocks.

Looking up the path towards Ravensheugh Log Cabin

Ravensheugh Log Cabin- turn left forthe beach and right for the tank blocks

If you go left here you will pass through a small wooded area and shortly be confronted by a steep sandy bank. Someone has thoughtfully created a make-shift rope handrail to assist you on this section, you will need to make use of it! At the bottom the path narrows through a gap in a wall and opens out into a sort of woodland clearing where in the past we have found rope-swings to play on and evidence of (illegal!) camp fires. Pass through this and you will emerge at the very top of the dunes that drop down onto Ravensheugh beach. This particular dune has been the source of hours of entertainment for my family- it has hosted games of ‘real life Fortnite’, and been barrel-rolled down countless times. There really is no better playground than the beach! As I have previously described- a right hand turn here will eventually lead you to the rocky part of the beach, past multiple entrances back into the woods. A full square circuit back down the other main path to the car park would probably take an hour or so, but leave yourself longer than that, you want time to meander and take it all in...

Looking back from the camp ‘clearing’… My son is seen here standing at the wall-gap at the bottom of the steep ‘handrail’ section. The railings at the top of the cliff are just in front of the log cabin and the views from there are incredible!

If you turn right at the cabin following the sign for the tank blocks, you will enter back into the woods, pass the cabin, track to the left and quickly be confronted with the sight of maybe 30 or so gigantic concrete cubes dumped in a long line in the middle of the trees, they look very alien in this natural environment! The ones here are close together- they invite you to climb on and challenge yourself to clear the gaps, I cant deny it is great, wholesome family fun! The path follows the line of tank blocks and then splits, a smaller path to the left allows you to scramble up to the top of a cliff for a stunning photo op of the Bass Rock, the main path on the right winds down past the cliffs and down once more to the beach...

I probably have not done any justice to this place in my write up today, I am absolutely sure it would be impossible to do so. There is so much to explore here it is worth putting aside a full afternoon and just wandering where your mood takes you... It is a great place for kids and dogs. Do wear boots or wellies, pop the babies in a carrier rather than a buggy and bear in mind that it is a bit of a trek to the beach which ever route you take.

Pressmennan Wood (Part 2- The Longer Circuit)

Nine Stone Rig, Lammermuir Hills