A Fabulous Day in Fife

Could I have asked for a more picture perfect day?

No grey clouds in sight.  Now, how lucky was that?

I could hear the Coastal Path calling my name.

As I indicated in my last post, I decided to head out to find those seals that I had searched for on my first visit to Scotland.  That was in January ’12, and although I remember a brilliant day, the trail was practically non-existent after a certain point, and quite contrary to what you may have been led to believe, I had no intentions of doing anything crazy just to view some seals.

But, Yvonne, the woman who runs the B&B where we are staying here in Kirkcaldy, mentioned that she and her husband had just seen the seals this weekend.  Well, that comment was all I needed to do a quick plan change and put on my walking shoes.

I headed through town, down to the Firth where the tide was obviously recessing.   The access to the Coastal Path was a bit complicated due to a lot of new construction going on right along the firth where the path entrance runs.

Apparently some genius decided to build a giant supermarket right against the firth, destroying the breathtaking views from dozens of homes built along the coast with the purpose of actually seeing the Firth.  The homeowners were told that they did not buy the view when they purchased their homes.  Now, I ask you, how sad is that?  Who in the world would want to gaze upon a supermarket instead of the beauty of nature?  And why would any company think that such an idea would be acceptable?  But, it appears to be a done deal, and I'm certain that there are a lot of very disappointed home owners.  

Well, I finally accessed the path and just could not believe the beauty of the day.  I walked along until I could see this stone tower ahead. 

This is the point where I had to stop the last time I attempted this walk. Yvonne had told me that this tower is one of many that had once stood along the coast.  People would travel up the coast on holiday, and would need a place to stay to break up the trip, so families had their own privately owned tower to overnight in. 

When I had walked the coastal trail at this point previously, the well trodden path had ended here.  Much to my surprise, a cindered walkway was greeting me this time,  and I knew that I'd have no problems hiking this part of the trail.

I rounded the corner and began my descent along the path.

 I wasn’t too far from the tower when I heard a long bellowing sound in the distance…….like a very sad moan.   Over and over again.   

Had the weather been foggy, I might have been convinced that there was some ghost haunting the tower, but I realized that the sound that was echoing off the cliffs came from the source of my quest.

How exciting!

It wasn’t too much further along the trail when I could glimpse the seals on the rocks.

Here’s a close up of the happy creatures

Can you see them laying on their backs, sunning their tummies?  They probably don't get many sunny days in which to bask themselves, and they were obviously enjoying themselves.

I stood there for quite awhile, watching them jump in and out of the water, just having a grand time, while continuing to  bellow out a forlorn cry.  It was obviously low tide, and I wondered if they would have come in much closer during high tide, but I certainly  wasn’t going to wait the hours involved with the changing of the tide to see.  I didn’t need to shake hands with them to enjoy their magnificence. 

At this point, I decided to continue on the coastal path to Kinghorn, since I had noted that the tower was just about a halfway point, and since it was newly graveled, I felt comfortable that I would have steady ground to walk along.

The vistas were gorgeous.

 And, there was plenty of activity along the way.  Obviously, something must smell awfully good here to attract this much attention.

Once in Kinghorn, I made my way to the train station to catch the train back to Kirkcaldy.  The station in Kirkcaldy is next to the art museum that just opened up last week.  I decided to pop in and see what the place had on display.  It was free, and I had plenty of time……so why not?

I was very impressed with the set up inside the museum.  Someone obviously put a lot of time into putting together the displays.  I was surprised to see that the museum holds the original charter from 1644 when Charles I confirmed Kirkcaldy as a Royal Burgh.  It is mounted behind glass, in its entirety, behind a steel door that you open up to view, then close when finished. .   Now that’s pretty amazing.

The place was brimming with the history of Kirkcaldy, which was once world renown for its linoleum industry.  Unfortunately this town ended up like many of the steel towns when those businesses closed down.  There is little vibrancy in the town today.

One facet of the museum that I was excited to see was its genealogy center.  If one had family to research from Kirkcaldy, or any nearby area, the resources that one would need are right at your fingertips. 

It is a genealogist’s dream.  Microfilm, with three readers, shelves of books that included parish registers and biographies,  census and newspaper films.

And all of these resources are free. 

So, if you have any family to research in this area…….you know where to go.  It’s right off the Kirkcaldy train station.  And, there’s a café where you can take a break and get a wee snack.   What more could you want?

I could have spent more time looking around inside, but I wanted to be sure to get outside to enjoy the lovely weather, which is a rare treat.  The grounds around the museum are landscaped beautifully and offer a pleasant walk in themselves.

Since the museum is free, I may just try to get back to view it in more detail should the weather become rainy.

In the meantime, I hope to get out on another outdoor adventure today even though the sun has disappeared. Ernest has promised me dry weather....but I'll be wearing my raincoat just in case.

Until tomorrow.......