Into the unknown this weekend as we travel to the South East coast of Scotland and the tiny village of St Abbs which is situated just off the A1 Edinburgh to London road in Berwickshire. This is new
territory for the both of us, which it is for most of the populace from the west central belt of Scotland, as this coast has traditionally been the holiday and weekend destination for the good citizens of Edinburgh and its suburbs.
The high, craggy cliffs around St Abbs Head are perhaps the best-known landmark along the magnificent Berwickshire coastline. From here it is possible to view the full complex coastline of sheer cliffs, offshore stacks and narrow gullies which provide scenic beauty and a habitat for some outstanding wildlife.
Although best known as a seabird colony, St Abbs Head also hosts a National Nature Reserve which includes 200 acres of grasslands rich in flowers, a freshwater loch and a steady stream of migrant birds.
Parking the car at the visitor centre outside of St Abbs and after a short walk of a mile or so through some bucolic splendour the single track road leads us to a lighthouse situated high on the pinnacle of St Abb’s head. This lighthouse like all lighthouses in the UK is now operated remotely and has been uninhabited since 1993 and the foghorn disconnected in 1987, it now sits proudly as a casualty of the electronic age.
St. Abbs is also 
a popular site for scuba divers as the sea around the village is unusually clear, in contrast to the more silt-laden coastal waters further to the north or south. As we traverse the high cliffs and face the onslaught of a strong south easterly wind we spot a small diving boat sailing back to the calmer waters of St Abbs harbour.
A former fishing village St Abbs is now home to Britain’s first Voluntary Marine Reserve and a RNLI lifeboat station and while sitting by the harbour we are fortunate to see the lifeboat being hauled up the slipway after a sojourn out on the North Sea.
Daylight hours were closing in on us as we headed along the coastal path and so the decision was made to abort our planned final destination of Eyemouth at the white sands and shabby beach huts of Coldingham Bay. In the right conditions this beach is a popular location for surfers but today it is populated with kite flyers and dog walkers.
Disappointed in our failure at not reaching our end destination by foot we travel down to Eyemouth by car and promise to return at a later date to complete our missed few miles of coast.
Eyemouth is perhaps best known in Scottish history for the Fishing Disaster on the 14th October 1881 when most of the fishing fleet, some 20 boats and 129 men from the town were lost in a terri
ble storm. Including victims from other coastal towns, a total of 189 men lost their lives.
Modern day Eyemouth is now very much a seaside resort with its long manicured beach, chip shops and pubs although there does seem to be a busy modern harbour within the town providing a shelter for some fishing boats and a seaman’s mission. Our first port of call after a brief walk around the town is Mackays Fish & Chip shop on the High Street for a traditional Fish supper before a leisurely stroll along the beach with some bizarrely flavoured ice creams (Jaffa cake, white chocolate, lemon sorbet) as the sun quickly set in the darkening horizon.
Due to the cars failed attempt at gaining an MOT we find ourselves low on options for our weekend meanderings but a pre-booked night at the theatre has been occupying our thoughts for some time now and tonight is our night to attend ‘The Kings Theatre’ to view the amateur produced musical 'Sunshine on Leith', based on the music of The Proclaimers.
The Proclaimers are renowned around the world for there geeky look and the broad Scottish dialect in there music that they refuse to anglicise. Their anthem ‘500 miles’ is probably their most popular track which made number one when re-released in 2007 for Comic Relief, this novelty track is the pinnacle of their musical efforts but behind their bespectacled appearance lies an impressive back catalogue of tunes blessed with humour, sadness, regret, political awareness and lyrics dripping with cutting insights of modern Scotland. The title of the play is taken from one or their famous singalong laments and a review of the musical from Mark Fisher of The Guardian is printed below.
“Why did it take 20 years before anyone noticed the Proclaimers were born to be turned into a musical? Not since Willy Russell came up with Blood Brothers has Britain produced such a perfect and perfectly unexpected marriage of music and theatre. Had playwright and screenwriter Stephen Greenhorn done nothing else, he should be declared a genius for spotting that the songs of Craig and Charlie Reid - with all their emotional honesty, singalong raucousness and political fire - are a true gift to the stage.
Though broad in comedy and blatant in sentimentality, Sunshine on Leith refuses to play by the rules of the jukebox musical. This is a show that begins on the Afghan battlefield with a band of squaddies singing about the imminence of death in Sky T
akes the Soul. The first act ends with a drunken brawl and a decidedly unromantic round of Hate My Love, while a scene among nurses driven insane by "efficiency targets" culminates in the polemical Everybody's a Victim, done as a country-gospel hospital hoedown. We Will Rock You it is not.
Even the title song plays against expectations, being sung for all its pathos by Ann Louise Ross over the seriously ill body of her husband of 30 years. We must thank the company for its restraint in playing only the melody of Act of Remembrance - the full tragic lament would have been unbearable.
It's true there is a contrivance about some of Greenhorn's setups, but his technique is never as blatant as that of Mamma Mia!, and he throws in some clever surprises, such as an all-male Let's Get Married performed in a Hibs-supporting sports bar.
His tale of two returning soldiers finding their feet back in Leith has the strengths and weaknesses of soap opera, being both emotionally upfront and concerned with the everyday stuff of ageing, adultery and falling in love. By choosing to explore the themes of the songs - Scottish identity, emotional inarticulacy, the rise of the call centre - the playwright does considerable justice to the range and seriousness of the Proclaimers' music, at the expense of some forward momentum in the plot.
But the highlights of James Brining's production are many, from Hilary Brooks' full-voiced arrangements to the gutsy performances of the 15-strong ensemble, making it a show worth walking 500 miles for, if not 500 more.”
Fine words and ones that we echo resoundingly.
The only negative we would add to the evening was that our seats which were situated in the centre of a row restricted us from joining the many exuberant theater goers who had taken to dancing in the aisles at the final scene and rousing encore.
Inverbeg on the West shore of Loch Lomond is our first destination today as we locate a scenic spot to capture an autobiographical film that Emma is compiling to enter in a competition being run by Saatchi to find the ‘Best of British’ artistic talent. Sadly, as we arrive at our location the sun disappears behind a thickenin
g cloud and ideal light conditions are lost as snow clouds gather. Not to be deterred we push on and capture a number of scenes which we have edited and composed and the result can be seen below.
With the ominous weather closing in we abort our scheduled Sunday stroll and take in the scenic splendour of ‘The Rest and be Thankful’ and Loch Fyne via the comfort of the car as we travel to The Loch Fyne Oyster Bar, which has developed from a small shack beside the A83 to a nationwide 49 restaurant franchise. The oysters, mussels and assorted seafood make for interesting viewing but do nothing to enhance our appetite as the ostentatious prices do not match the tired looking surroundings which are clearly aimed at the passing tourist with loose money to spare.
From here we travel to The Drimsynie Estate which dominates the small town of Lochgoilhead on Loch Goil. The main hotel/castle
which heads up the estate contains a small swimming pool, Jacuzzi, steam room and sauna which we relax in as the snow comes down at a thickening girth outside. After a simple meal of Scampi and Chips at a price the oyster bar would charge for a starter we realise that the climb out of Lochgoilhead to the top of The Rest and be Thankful is not going to be a journey for the faint hearted as the steep incline has near ninety degree bends towards its summit. The tension in the car is thick and the noise of our quickening heartbeats almost audible as we eventually reach the top with a few gentle skids along the way as our aesthetic pallor matches the whiteout conditions at the top of the peak.
The A82 road along Loch Lomond proves to be no less hazardous as the snow reaches blizzard conditions and we become increasingly irritated at the lack of snow ploughs on the main road between two of Scotland’s major cities, Inverness and Glasgow.
The austere outline of Glasgow never felt as welcoming as it did this evening as the expected one hour journey takes a fretful two hours plus, adding an extra dimension to a day which started in brilliant sunshine.
The tranquil Croy Bay and the Dunure to Ayr Coastal Path on the South Ayrshire coast are our primary locations today, on the way there we stop at the curious phenomena known as the ‘Electric Brae’ which is situated on the A719 coastal road between Ayr and Girvan. The reason for the Braes’ popular renown is th
e illusion that is created on the hill when a car owner stops his/her car on a downward part of the hill and releases the hand brake, the car will appear to travel up the hill under its own motion. At a conveniently placed lay-by there is an interpretation cairn offering the following concise explanation:
"The 'Electric Brae', known locally as Croy Brae.This runs the quarter mile from the bend overlooking Croy railway viaduct in the west (286 feet Above Ordnance Datum) to the wooded Craigencroy Glen (303 feet above A.O.D.) to the east.Whilest there is this slope of 1 in 86 upwards from the bend at the Glen, the configuration of the land on either side of the road provides an optical illusion making it look as if the slope is going the other way.Therefore, a stationary car on the road with the brakes off will appear to move slowly uphill.The term 'Electric Brae' dates from a time when it was incorrectly thought to be a phenomenon caused by electric or magnetic attraction within the Brae."
To illustrate this strange reversal of gravitational force we stop at a steep decline and record our wee car reversing up the 
Brae unaided, which can be viewed on the clip below.
On completion of our unusual and surreal experience we travel the short distance down to Croy Bay for a mask photo-shoot with the beautiful snow dusted Arran Hills as a backdrop. The stunning winter sun provides perfect light conditions for the celluloid captures but the cold wind blowing in from the North makes one wonder if the effects of Global Warming have bypassed Scottish shores.
From Croy Bay we travel the short distance up the coast to Dunure which is dominated by the presence of its strategically placed castle above a picturesque harbour. At the old port we change into attire more suitable for the invigorating winter breeze which is now blowing face-on as we set off on the nine mile walk along the coastline to Ayr beach. The path covers a host of underfoot 
terrains as we stride across beaches, rocky outcrops, sand dunes, old railway tracks, cliff climbs and finally a tar macadam stroll along the Ayr promenade. The salt air, freshening wind and stunning views gained along the way make the three and a half hour walk pass all too quickly as we arrive in Ayr at sundown.
As a reward for an eventful and industrious day we seek nourishment in the highly recommended Prestwick diner: The Pinewood Restaurant, which serves us with a beautifully prepared fare but portion sizes more suitable for teething children than hardy walkers who have just spent a winter’s day on the Ayrshire coast.
In preparation for Emma’s anticipated attempt at walking the 95 miles of The West Highland Way in March we decide to get in some
serious training by walking the strenuous 16.75 mile circuit around Glen Finglas known as The Mell which is situated just above Brig O’ Turk in The Trossachs.
Before we begin the long and hilly circuit we visit the dam which has formed the Glen Finglas Reservoir and gaze in awe at the overflowing water as it topples over the top of the monolithic eyesore and wonder at the power that passes through its concrete fortification.
After a steep beginning to our walk we venture in to Glen Meann and climb to a high pass to circle Meall Cala known as The Mell. Beau
tiful woods and rushing streams are found in the glens, while the summit of the trail at 600 metres has a bleak mountain feel. The weather which was kind to us at the outset takes a rather sinister turn for the worse as we ascend to the highest point and for 2 miles we find underfoot conditions more suited for snow shoes and crampons as the path has a heavy overcoat of packed snow. Not to be deterred we press on through a couple of snow falls as we see clearer conditions below us as we descend in to the relative warmth of Glen Finglas and return to base in darkness having completed the circuit in six and a half hours.
territory for the both of us, which it is for most of the populace from the west central belt of Scotland, as this coast has traditionally been the holiday and weekend destination for the good citizens of Edinburgh and its suburbs.
a popular site for scuba divers as the sea around the village is unusually clear, in contrast to the more silt-laden coastal waters further to the north or south. As we traverse the high cliffs and face the onslaught of a strong south easterly wind we spot a small diving boat sailing back to the calmer waters of St Abbs harbour.
ble storm. Including victims from other coastal towns, a total of 189 men lost their lives.
