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North Berwick to Dunbar

The John Muir Way is a long distance path named in honour of the Scottish conservationist John Muir, who was born in Dunbar in the 19th Century. This final official section of the walk begins at the fashionable holiday resort of North Berwick before heading across farmland to skirt the vast saltmarshes of the River Tyne estuary before entering Dunbar via a dramatic clifftop footpath to finish at John Muir's birthplace - now an excellent museum in the centre of Dunbar.

Terrain

Some well-made surfaced footpaths and pavements, other sections on narrow and potentially muddy footpaths and tracks.

Public Transport

North Berwick and Dunbar are both served by both bus and trains.

Start

North Berwick. Open start point in Google Maps for directions.

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Walk Statistics

Distance: 23km / 14.25 miles
Time: 5 - 5.5 hours
Ascent: 174m (Profile)
Start Grid Ref: NT551852

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Accommodation

Walk Description

Stage 1

Follow North Berwick High Street east to a T-junction with a seating area overlooked by a large mural. Turn right for a short distance towards the war memorial, cross the road and pass through the gates of whitewashed North Berwick Lodge. Go through the archway to enter the Lodge gardens, and follow the path as signposted - right then curving left, passing the pavilion on your right to enter the Victorian Parkland. Continue straight ahead to leave the gardens and proceed towards the towering presence of North Berwick Law - a volcanic plug that was formed 350 million years ago and shaped in the more recent Ice Age.

Stage 2

The well-signposted path weaves through a residential area to emerge at the Law car park. Proceed as directed towards the ascent path, then branch off the surfaced path onto a grassy path to the right. Cross a stone wall and proceed along the footpath adjacent to farmland. The dead-straight path crosses a farm access track before meeting a quiet surfaced road. Turn left for 500 metres before re-entering farmland on the right and skirting a series of fields to enter a patch of woodland east of Balgone House. Follow the well-made path through the woods for 1km, through a dark canopy of rhododendron bushes and into Craigmoor Wood before emerging onto a country lane with a panoramic view over the Lammermuir Hills to the south.

Stage 3

Head left for a short time, then turn right onto a straight track passing a couple of small settlements before reaching a further country lane. Again, turn left then right onto a much smaller and muddier lane adjacent to a patch of woodland. Bypass the industrial detritus surrounding Kamehill, cross a footbridge surrounded by a sea of reeds and strike out along a red clay footpath shadowing a drainage ditch. This path becomes more substantial before rising up and over Drylaw Hill to reveal East Linton beyond. Dating from the 16th century - when the bridge was built over the River Tyne for the Edinburgh to London Post Road - East Linton is an ideal location for a lunch break as well as offering opportunities for overnight accommodation.

Stage 4

Turn left soon after entering East Linton - signposted Prestonkirk Parish Church and Preston Mill - the former incorporating elements of the original 13th Century St Baldred's Kirk. Shortly after passing the imposing building branch right onto a footpath high above the river. Cross a footbridge and turn left to follow the river along a narrow footpath towards the superbly-named settlement of Phantassie. Preston Mill can be seen across the river - there has been a mill on this site since the 12th Century, though the current buildings date from the 17th Century and are now looked after by the National Trust for Scotland (the Mill can be visited by a short detour just before crossing the footbridge). Follow the river as directed - crossing at several footbridges as the river meanders through the farmland. Turn right after passing under Tyninghame Bridge to shadow the A198 for a short distance, before turning left along a farm access track.

Stage 5

Before long this track arrives at the vast expanse of Hedderwick Sands - complex saltmarshes forming the River Tyne estuary. Skirt the southern edge and cross a footbridge to enter the complete contrast of the Hedderwick Hill pine plantation and the surreal animal inhabitants and structures that form the East Links Family Park. Now within the John Muir Country Park, the route follows the line of Belhaven Bay - site of an important harbour from the 12th to 16th Century before silting forced a relocation along the coast to Cromwell Harbour in Dunbar. Eventually the path reaches a footbridge across Biel Water - turn left after crossing this and continue onwards to a series of car parks and barbecue areas.

Stage 6

Turn left and negotiate these hardstandings to reach a grassy path. Proceed along this - navigation is simply a case of keeping the sea on the left - and enjoy the twists and turns as the path follows the complex shoreline and rugged red cliffs before reaching Dunbar near the Leisure Centre. Head along Bayswell Road to the roundabout at the top of the High Street. Head down this to visit the John Muir Birthplace museum, and the statue of John Muir as a boy. This is the official end of the trail.

Route: Phil Turner

Optional extension: Dunbar to Dunglass

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