CATTERLINE AND CRAWTON

A glance at the Catterline website reveals that the Christmas celebrations are in full swing in this little village on the east coast of Scotland. The local pub is holding a Christmas party for the residents on Friday, to which they are invited to wear black tie and best frocks, while two days later the church is putting on music and words accompanied by mulled wine and mince pies. Wish you were there? I do.

Catterline is perched on top of a cliff. It has a long history of fishing and smuggling activities, and acquired a pier in 1810 for the protection of the fishing vessels based there. Neighbouring Crawton also had a thriving fishing industry, but the boats moved from there to safer facilities at Stonehaven. There is a path linking the two villages. Also, from Crawton, birdwatchers should take the path to nearby Fowlsheugh RSPB Reserve, where huge numbers of kittiwakes, fulmars, razorbills, guillemots and other birds share this prime bit of sea-bird real estate.

Christianity arrived in the area around the year 400 when St Ninian came and converted the Picts, but the present incarnation of Catterline's church, St Philip's, only dates from 1848, though somehow it looks older. Its interior, with its whitewashed walls, has a bright, airy feel to it. Like many little coastal communities around the country, the village has proved a magnet for artists, and belongs to that select club with a "school" named after them. The "Catterline School" of artists, which came about during the 1950s, included Joan Eardley, who owned a cottage in the village, and whose works include "The Wave", painted outside during stormy weather in February 1961: that shows dedication!

Webcam view of Catterline Bay.

Map of the area.

View of Catterline Pier and Catterline Bay - geograph.org.uk - 1493683. Photo by Alan Morrison, via Wikimedia Commons.

GOURDON AND INVERBERVIE

Just to the south of Inverbervie, the village of Gourdon has a long history of fishing possibly stretching back to Neolithic times. The harbour was no more than a gap in the rocks until 1819 when Thomas Telford built a proper harbour, later expanded. Inverbervie was granted the status of Royal Burgh by King David II when he and his Queen were forced to land here in 1341 during stormy weather on their way back from France, and the locals looked after them in their hour of need. The town takes its name from the River Bervie, which flows into the North Sea here. Fishing used to be the mainstay of the economy until a flax mill was opened, leading to a thriving textiles industry. One of the town's more notable sons was Hercules Linton, who designed the Cutty Sark tea clipper. He is remembered through a commemorative garden with a monument consisting of a full-size replica of the ship's figurehead. Linton is buried in the local church graveyard. Hallgreen Castle, overlooking the seafront, is now a private home offering tourist accommodation.

Map of the area.

Bervie Bay, Inverbervie - geograph.org.uk - 2139158. Photo by Dona Robbins, via Wikimedia Commons.

ST CYRUS AND JOHNSHAVEN

The small community of St Cyrus, just north of Montrose and at the southern extreme of the Aberdeenshire coast, is best known for its beautiful 3-mile beach and its National Nature Reserve, where in summer a host of butterflies can be found flitting among the flora here, which includes the purple clustered bellflower. Hovering above this lovely scene are the peregrine falcons which stalk the skies, ready to home in on their prey.

In the 18th century, Johnshaven was one of the most important fishing communities in Scotland. However, many of the young men at that time were being whisked away by the navy press gangs, leaving a shortage of manpower. Johnshaven's role as a fishing village is celebrated each year with a Fish Festival, held during the first half of August. The exact date depends on the tides. One of the big draws nowadays is the lobster fishing. The unfortunate lobsters can often be seen in water tanks by the harbourside, where they are kept before being exported to the Continent. Nearby, the Mill of Benholm is a restored, working water-powered meal mill which can be visited in summer. Also at Benholm is Benholm Church, on a site dating from at least the 13th century.

Map of the area.

Johnshaven Harbour - geograph.org.uk - 1832561. Photo by JThomas, via Wikimedia Commons.

MONTROSE

On August 20 1773 the famous 18th century travelling companions James Boswell and Dr Samuel Johnson fetched up in Montrose during a tour of Scotland. They were none too impressed with their lodgings there, an inn where according to Boswell a waiter "put a lump of sugar with his fingers into Dr. Johnson's lemonade, for which he called him "rascal!"." However, the following morning they started to see the town in a better light, visiting the town hall "where is a good dancing room, and other rooms for tea-drinking". [i]

The Montrose Boswell and Johnson visited in 1773 would have been a very different place to the present-day Montrose. There would have been no Montrose Academy in those days, with its handsome golden dome - the Academy was established in 1815. Neither would they have been able to visit the Montrose Museum, opened in 1842 and housed in an elegant building in the neo-classical style with Ionic columns on either side of the doorway. The present-day Montrose Parish Church would not yet have been built; instead Boswell and Johnson would have looked upon its predecessor, a 16th century church and bell tower, extended in 1643. They would also have been denied the chance to visit the Montrose Air Station Heritage Centre, on the site of Britain's first military air station, which was established in 1912.

However, the pair would have had the chance to enjoy a round of golf, since the first recorded instance of golf being played in Montrose was in 1562, or possibly even earlier. They also would have been able to indulge in a bit of bird-watching on the tidal waters of Montrose Basin, although they would have had to return in winter to observe the many bird species who arrive at the Basin at this time of year, including greylag and pink-footed geese. The modern-day Montrose combines industry and tourism, with a port and North Sea oil supply base existing alongside a sandy beach, two golf courses, and the seafront with the Traill Pavilion.  For art fans there is the William Lamb Studio.

[i] From Everybody's Boswell, edited by Frank Morley.

Live streaming webcam view, provided by Montrose Port Authority.

Map of the area.

Montrose Port by Nick. Photo by Nick Birse, via Wikimedia Commons.

LUNAN BAY

Walking along the beautiful, unspoilt beach of this bay, voted the best in Scotland in the year 2000, it is hard to imagine the events of around a millennium ago. In the year 1010 Lunan Bay witnessed a massive invasion of Vikings who were on their way to sack Dundee - an abortive mission as it turned out, thanks to be best efforts of Malcolm II and his fearsome Scottish army at Barry Sands (Carnoustie). It was probably the Viking invasions which led to the construction of "rubeum castrum", or Red Castle, in the 12th century, so called because it was built from red sandstone. William The Lion used it as a residence for his hunting expeditions. In the 16th century, the castle bore witness to scenes worthy of a modern-day soap opera when the owner, Lady Elizabeth Beaton, took a much younger husband, James Gray, who proceeded to fall in love with her daughter. He was thrown out of the castle, and exacted his revenge by laying siege to it, then sacking and burning the property with its inhabitants still inside. The castle has been in ruins ever since, giving the bay a backdrop at once romantic and melancholy.

The magnificent beach with its backdrop of dunes is perfect for belting along on horseback, while the water is popular with surfers. Surfers are cautioned to watch out for salmon nets, because the bay is still used for traditional fishing methods. Another potential hazard for surfers is unexploded World War II bombs. In 1996, the Scottish press reported that the Army were planning to clean up the bay, after 46 unexploded shells were found there, a reminder of the time when the bay was used as a practise bombing range.

Map of the area.

Cliffs on the north side of Lunan Bay - geograph.org.uk - 196079. Photo by Anne Burgess, via Wikimedia Commons.

ARBROATH

Walking around Arbroath harbour, there is one inescapable sensation: the smell of smoke. Arbroath is the home of the famous Arbroath Smokies, the smoked haddock delicacy which is produced in the smokehouses beside this picturesque fishing port. The smokies are smoked over a hardwood fire of beech and oak set in a half whiskey barrel. In spite of their name, the smokies were first produced in the little fishing village of Auchmithie, a few miles up the coast. If the smoky, fishy smell gets your taste buds tingling, you can buy the smokies hot off the barrel.

Arbroath is the largest town in Angus, and as well as an important fishing port, it has grown into a popular seaside resort. One of the longest established attractions on the seafront is Kerr's Miniature Railway, much beloved by families, which was established in 1935. Another popular activity is to walk the Arbroath Cliffs nature trail between Arbroath and Auchmithie, which offers the opportunity to observe sea-bird nesting grounds among a spectacular coastline peppered with sea stacks and interesting rock formations. The ruined Arbroath Abbey was built in 1178 and dedicated by King William the Lion to Thomas Becket. The Declaration of Arbroath, a reaffirmation of Scottish independence, was signed here in 1320. The town's history is on display at the Signal Tower Museum, located on the seafront by the harbour.

For a list of events in Angus, follow this link.

Map of the area.

Arbroath Harbour. Photo by Karen Vernon, via Wikimedia Commons.

CARNOUSTIE

Here's a head-scratcher for you. What do Carnoustie on the coast of Angus in Scotland and Abbey Road in London have in common? Answer below. Carnoustie is one of Scotland's top locations for golf, with no fewer than four golf courses, the main one of which, Carnoustie Golf Links, has hosted the Open on seven occasions. The most notorious part of the course is towards the end, when the local waterway, Barry Burn, proves a challenge for the golfers. Like Dundee, the town made its fortune from textiles; now, due to its location just 11 miles from Dundee, it acts as a dormitory town for people working in the city. Beachgoers are catered for in the area known as Barry Sands.

Long before the arrival of the textiles and the golf, Carnoustie was the scene of a major battle in the 11th century, when a Danish army massed at Barry Sands intending to march on Dundee. However, the Scots were waiting for them and managed to defeat them. It is said that the battle was so fierce that Barry Burn ran with blood for some time afterwards. One of Carnoustie's most interesting buildings is Barry Mill, a rare example of a water-powered oatmeal mill, powered by the water from Barry Burn. Visitors can watch milling demonstrations in the still-working mill.

Answer: The photographer Ian Macmillan, who took the photograph for the cover of the Beatles' album Abbey Road, was born in Carnoustie.

Map of the area.

Carnoustie Beach. Photo by Stevanhogg, via Wikimedia Commons.