This very varied stretch of the Fife Coastal Path takes in some quiet shorelines, picturesque harbours and ruined castles, as well as a walk along the long promenade at Kirkcaldy.
Waymarked coastal path, pavements, roads.
Train and bus to Burntisland and bus from Kinghorn.
Burntisland.
Start from the east end of Burntisland High Street where it overlooks the Links, a large seafront park. Turn right here to pass The Crown and climb a small rise to Lammerlaws Road. Turn left and cross the railway and pass to the right of the leisure centre before bearing left to follow the promenade along the long sandy beach with the railway on the left. At the far end of the beach pass the house and turn left to go under the railway line and turn right at the main road. The A921 is followed all the way to Kinghorn, it has a pavement and the views improve once it climbs and passes the caravan parks but it is still a relatively busy road although a lot quieter outside commuting times. After passing some houses on the entrance to Kinghorn, turn right onto Inch View and follow the road to the right to pass round the cemetery. Take the steps down to the houses at Pettycur Bay, turn left and continue along past the harbour.
Follow Pettycur Road uphill until just after the junction with David the First Street, then turn right onto the coastal path as signposted - take the second right on the way down until steps lead down to the seafront. Continue past the houses on the front before taking a left turn at Barton Buildings; head up the narrow lane here and pass under the railway. Just before the flats turn right through the playpark and take the path from the far corner that passes back under the railway. It now continues along an attractive, more open section of the coast.
The sandstone ruins of Seafield Tower soon come into view. The castle here dates back to the 16th century; the walls are five feet thick and are believed to have once been five storeys high. The path passes to the left of the tower, revealing a view of Kirkcaldy stretching round the bay ahead. Continue on the coastal route which eventually leads to Seafield car park. Leave the car park by its entrance track (or the grassy path on its left), then at the estate of modern bungalows turn right. Turn right again at a t-junction, soon reaching the very busy A921; turn right again, along the pavement.
After around 300m and immediately after crossing a burn turn right to follow the seafront promenade. This extends for 1.5km across the seafront of Kirkcaldy, with the Link Sands on the right provide a distraction from the busy road, flats and industry over to the left. At the far end of the promenade continue beside the busy A921, turning right just after a pelican crossing to pass Hutchisons Flour Mill; fork left to pass the left side of the tall Mill (but avoid the weighbridge). At the Scottish Water building turn right alongside the security fence, soon on a path. This loops towards the coast before reaching the road at the Pathhead Beach car park. Keep to the left of the car park, following a tarmac path across the grass.
A tarmac drive is reached beneath the impressive ruin of Ravenscraig Castle, built for King James II; go straight across the lane onto a path which rounds the foot of the cliff (at high tide you'll need to turn left to insatead pass above the castle on a signed detour). Follow the path past the cliff to reach a beach. Cross this (low tide only) to reach a flight of stone steps on the far side of the bay. Take this to climb up into Ravenscraig Park, where the high tide route rejoins from the left. Keep right at each of several forks in the path. Eventually the path comes alongside the shore once more. Further on crags block the route ahead but the path continues through a tunnel burrowed into the rock.
Emerge blinking onto the cobblestones of the picturesque harbour at Dysart. Pass around the back of the harbour and then turn right onto Pan Ha, picking up the walkway by the seawall. This part of Dysart is packed with whitewashed houses with stepped gables, very much in the Fife style and bearing some resemblance to Culross. Continuing on the path, the more work-a-day housing of the sixties and seventies tell of the town's more recent history in coal-mining. The path swings behind a green area and then leads up steps, passing a telescope and then crossing a green to join Edington Place and head to the right along it.
The path leads across a footbridge and next heads to the Frances Colliery Memorial where carved stones and information boards remember the mines that were once the heart of the community, before being closed in the wake of the miners' strike in the 1980s. Further on the path passes all that remains - the winding headgear above the shaft. After leaving the mining area behind the path becomes more rural and descends steps to cross the back of an attractive bay, with the cottages of West Wemyss visible beyond. Pass an old stone tower before reaching West Wemyss harbour.
West Wemyss is the most attractive of the villages on this stage of the Fife Coastal Path, beautifully restored by the Wemyss Estate in recent years. The route itself keeps tightly by the seawall to reach a car park and then continue right along the coastline beyond. Eventually it passes through a gap in a wall to run along the far side before joining a track. When this curves inland look out for a turn on the right (waymarked) and then turn right again to regain the coastline at the start of East Wemyss. Continue by the seawall to reach the heart of the village, where a memorial commemorates its most famous son - the accordionist Jimmy Shand.
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