It seems a long time ago now, but back at the beginning of May we took a trip in the motorhome to Silverdyke Caravan Park in Cellardyke. I know we were there some nine months previously but we enjoyed it so we returned.
When we arrived we got the van all set up then had a cup of tea (this is totally against caravan etiquette which dictates you must have at least one large glass of wine on arrival, whether you have got your van set up or not). Us rule-breakers enjoyed our relaxed cuppa then went for a little stroll.
The late afternoon views over Cellardyke from the edge of the caravan park were just lovely:
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| View from Silverdyke |
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| View towards the Isle of May |
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| View over Cellardyke |
We were also fortunate enough to spot some wildlife, in the form of a Yellowhammer preening itself on the telephone wire:
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| Yellowhammer on Telephone Wire |
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| Yellowhammer Preening |
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| Lovely Male Yellowhammer |
I even managed to capture it on video:
Always nice to see (and hear) a Yellowhammer.
We moved onwards and downwards towards Cellardyke, stopping for a short while at the little harbour known locally as Skinfast Haven (or just 'The Haven'). Here you get the feel of what it was like to live in a small fishing community on the East Coast of Fife:
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| Skinfast Haven Harbour |
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| The Houses at Skinfast Haven |
Like any proper fishing community it had it's own pub:
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| The Haven, at Cellardyke |
The views from the harbour out to sea were not too shabby either:
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| Looking past the harbour wall to the Isle of May |
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| Looking towards North Berwick |
We then winded our way along the narrow streets of Cellardyke, stopping occasionally to peer down the narrow lanes we passed on the way:
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| Cellardyke's Main Street (George Street) |
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| Toft Terrace (for the well-to-do?) |
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| A Lane with No Name? |
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| Sharps Close (sounds familiar) |
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| Urquhart Wynd |
George Street changed into John Street and we soon reached Cellardyke Town Hall at the junction with Toolbooth Wynd:
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| Cellardyke Town Hall |
I think we are coming back here in October to celebrate someone's birthday; but I digress, we headed on down James Street towards Anstruther.
We enjoyed looking at the boats in Anstruther harbour, including the famous Fifie Herring Drifter named 'Reaper' (a wooden sailing boat made in Fraserburgh in 1902):
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| The Boats in Anstruther Harbour |
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| Reaper, a Fifie Herring Drifter |
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| Reaper's massive wooden mast |
We headed further along the waterfront before turning inland and up towards the old church on Burial Brae:
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| Anstruther Easter Parish Church |
After this we headed back along Crail Road towards the caravan park, where we enjoyed a relaxing evening in the motorhome.
The next morning we got up (not too early) had our breakfast and showers before heading out for a mid-morning walk. We went in the opposite direction from yesterday and headed up on to the Crail Road, where we turned right towards Kilrenny.
We had only walked a few yards along the road when I heard a bird singing from an electricity cable above the field. Closer inspection revealed that this bird looked very much like a Corn Bunting:
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| Bird on a wire near Kilrenny |
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| A Corn Bunting perhaps? |
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| Looks like a Corn Bunting |
I was able to capture it on video; and I was subsequently able to confirm that it was a Corn Bunting as I suspected:
That was a really good spot, Corn Buntings are a hard bird to see in Scotland. Apparently the fields around the Kilrenny area are known to be Corn Bunting 'Hotspots'.
We carried on towards Kilrenny village, where we had a leisurely look around before heading down towards the church:
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| Kilrenny Church |
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| Kilrenny Church and Burn |
We stopped to admire the little burn that runs passed the church:
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| Kilrenny Burn |
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| Kilrenny Burn |
We crossed over the Crail Road at this point and headed down the track that runs alongside the burn, towards Kilrenny Mill.
Here I spotted a Yellowhammer conveniently posing on a signpost:
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| Bird on Signpost |
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| Male Yellowhammer on Signpost |
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| Yellowhammer Posing near Kilrenny Mill |
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| Yellowhammer still Posing |
It was very obliging and hung around long enough for me to get some decent photos. It certainly was the area to see buntings.
A little further down the track we came to the entrance to Kilrenny Mill Caravan Park. In the woods adjacent to the caravan park we spotted a large Heron in the trees, presumably on or near a nest:
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| Heron in a tree at Kilrenny Mill |
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| Headless Heron |
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| Still Hiding |
It was obviously not bothered by us being nearby as it spent most of the time with it's head tucked under its wing:
Herons tend to nest pretty early in the season so it wouldn't surprise me if there was a nearby nest with eggs or even chicks in it.
Meanwhile we had to content ourselves with a cute little Bunny in the grass below the trees:
It better watch out, Herons are known to eat Rabbit kittens, although this one looked big enough to put up a fight. We carried on until we reached Kilrenny Mill:
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| Moira at Kilrenny Mill |
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| Eddie at Kilrenny Mill |
A little further along the track we reached Silverdyke, we had come full circle:
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| Silverdyke Caravan Park |
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| New Vannie at Silverdyke |
Just before we entered the caravan park we noticed this lovely Goldfinch in a nearby bush:
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| Bird in the bushes |
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| A lovely Goldfinch |
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| Goldfinch Close-up |
We were glad to get back to the motorhome for a spot of lunch.
We had a relaxing afternoon hanging around the caravan park before heading out late afternoon to meet up with our friends Ken and Amanda. We were due to meet up with them at The Haven pub, however when we got there it was unfortunately closed and they were waiting outside for us. We walked a little further along the road to The Coastal Inn (which is also in Cellardyke) and had a few drinks and lots of chat in there.
Ken was able to confirm that the bird we had seen this morning was a Corn Bunting and that there was an ongoing project involving conservation groups and local farmers to encourage Corn Buntings and similar species to breed in the area. This involves planting cereal crops with a wildflower seed mix included, leaving wild field margins and managing the cutting regime to benefit birds and pollinators.
The trial areas are frequently surveyed and it appears to be working; and one of the species that have benefitted from this project is the Corn Bunting, with breeding pair numbers on the rise.
The next day we were up relatively early and after breakfast we caught the local No.95 bus to St Andrews. It was an enjoyable half hour bus ride through the little villages of Crail and Kingsbarns before arriving at St Andrews.
When we arrived we had a cup of coffee before heading to the East end of the town for a walk around the old cathedral area. The first structure of note was this impressive gatehouse which spans a lane called The Pends, which heads down to the old harbour:
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| Gatehouse at the Pends |
We didn't head down the Pends but instead followed the road round to the front of the old cathedral:
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| The Ruins of St Andrew Cathedral |
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| Eddie at St Andrews Cathedral |
We followed the road round a little further then headed down Gregory Place towards East Scores. Here you got a slightly different view of the old Cathedral:
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| St Andrews Cathedral from Gregory Lane |
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| Mile Marker near East Scores |
Whilst we couldn't see the bridges from here the views from East Scores were pretty good:
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| Looking East from East Scores |
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| Looking North from East Scores |
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| Moira at East Scores, St Andrews |
Directly below us some Eiders had hauled out on to the rocks and were enjoying a spot of sun-bathing:
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| Male Eider on the Rocks |
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| Nice Colours |
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| You looking at me? |
We headed North along East Scores, towards St Andrews Castle:
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| Heading towards St Andrews Castle |
Here we saw a pretty Pied Wagtail on top of the pan-tiled roof of a cottage:
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| Pretty Pied Wagtail |
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| Pied Wagtail Posing |
We soon reached the ruins of St Andrews Castle:
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| St Andrews Castle on the shoreline |
The castle dates from the 13th century and apparently has a dungeon and secret passages (wouldn't be much of a castle if it didn't have these). We moved on.
The East Scores becomes simply The Scores at this point and the buildings are less ruined and become decidedly more upmarket. Some buildings are private residences, some are hotels and many belong to St Andrews University:
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| St Salvator's Hall (University of St Andrews) |
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| Impressive Buildings on The Scores |
The view from these impressive buildings on The Scores wasn't too shabby either:
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| Looking East from The Scores |
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| West Sands from The Scores |
We ambled on down towards the West Sands area, stopping at Bruce Embankment to take some photos:
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| Headed towards the West Sands |
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| The Expanse of St Andrews West Sands |
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| The rocky foreshore at Bruce Embankment |
This rocky foreshore at Bruce Embankment is usually a good place to do a spot of bird watching. There wasn't a great deal about on this occasion:
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| Looking for Birds along the foreshore |
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| A few Eiders and some Gulls |
Not much to see, but I did enjoy watching the Eiders boss the gulls about, there's not many birds do that to a Herring Gull:
It was getting a bit breezy and the sea was getting a bit choppy, so we ditched the idea of going skinny dipping and headed back into the town for a spot of lunch. After lunch we got the bus back to Cellardyke and had a relaxing afternoon in preparation for going out for a meal in the evening.
We only had a few days at Silverdyke but it was really enjoyable, must go back another time.
Cheers
Teddy Edward
