16 October 2013 – Haddington to Dunbar and back

16Oct_mapWith about 4 hours straddling lunch time to play with, we decided on an away trip today and took the bikes on the back of the car as far as Haddington. We parked in a small car park slightly away from the centre of town, to avoid the 90 minute time limit. Our idea was to follow cycle route 76 as far as Dunbar then reverse the route, which is precisely what we did…

To start with, we negotiated the one way system and picked up route 76, taking us over the footbridge near the Waterside Inn. We followed the route out of town on a very quiet country road. There was no more than a gentle breeze at this point though the day was overcast and rain was forecast for later in the afternoon.

After a few miles, we were heading in the direction of Traprain Law, a large rocky outcrop visible for miles. The road leading up towards it looked quite steep, so it came as a relief that the cycle route then took a left turn in the direction of Hailes Castle. The road started out nice and flat and had been recently resurfaced, which made for easy rolling. Pretty soon, we reached the castle, so we stopped for a good look around.

Hailes Castle - how many people have gazed out over those fields down the centuries?

Hailes Castle – how many people have gazed out over those fields down the centuries?

The site is free to enter and wander around, and much of the ruins remain. There are plenty of information plaques describing how the castle would have been used in the past. I particularly liked how much of the castle was given over to the alehouse, and that the average person consumed at least a litre of ale each day. I think it’s good to keep these traditions alive!

After a good look around, we hopped back on the bikes and continued east, with the “new” A1 dual carriageway making its presence felt. Our road went underneath it, then continued downhill to East Linton. From the wonderfully-named Phantassie junction, we carried on along route 76, which followed the dual-use pavement on the north side of the old A1. The next few miles were straight, flat and fairly boring, until we came to the turnoff for Dunbar (the A1087).

Belhaven Bay. Seen at high tide, this bridge looks a bit silly

Belhaven Bay. Seen at high tide, this bridge looks a bit silly

The cycle route briefly shared the road with traffic, before taking a left and joining up with a path along the Beil Water as it flowed to meet the sea at Belhaven Bay. At the end of the path, we got onto Back Road, running alongside a golf course, which took us right into Dunbar town centre.

It was a little early for lunch but we fancied some chips from the chippie. Luckily they were already frying at 11.45am, so I popped in and got us a bag each. We trotted off down to the harbour and ate them sitting on a bench. They were just perfect – why can’t we get them like that near us??? There were loads of gull feathers blowing around the harbour, but the gulls themselves didn’t come a-begging for chips. If they had done, I would have given them some. That would have been a bad idea though, as we noticed a sign on the way back warning that feeding the gulls attracted a £50 fine! I guess it must have served its purpose as the gulls clearly didn’t expect to get anything from us.

Dunbar at the sea front

Dunbar at the sea front

After our feed, we meandered our way through Dunbar until we came to the second golf course, where we turned around and started heading back where we came from. It was about high tide when we left, and Colette stopped for a few more photos at the shore in Belhaven before retracing our steps. As we headed back towards East Linton, we were on the lookout for a tea room. We passed a farm shop and went to investigate, but unfortunately it was one of the rare breed that doesn’t have a cafe. We continued to East Linton in the knowledge that there definitely is a cafe there, only to find it closed for half term. So we had to leave East Linton unrefreshed, with a couple of pauses to admire the lovely fountain and the view of the River Tyne from the bridge.

The ride back was quite easy, with none of the undulations in the road proving particularly troublesome. A mile or two out from Haddington, we passed along a oak-lined road, accompanied by the sound of occasional acorns dropping onto the tarmac. It looked like ideal country for spotting jays so I kept a good eye out, but didn’t see any sign of one.

We turned up back at the car park with just under 30 miles on the clock. As I packed away, the cold started to bite, adding to the urgency to head home ASAP for that overdue cuppa and a slice of delicious home-made carrot cake.

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