Edinburgh + Fife Coastal Path: May 2023
At Kirkcaldy. Sony A7C + MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4.
We signed up for a walking holiday with Macs Adventure to tackle the Fife Coastal path in 6 walking days. This was my first time being in Europe, the UK, or Scotland, and I was really excited! We landed in Edinburgh and spent two nights looking around this beautiful city. Apart from being misted upon when we first arrived in Edinburgh, the weather had been incredibly gorgeous throughout our stay in Scotland. I got pretty tanned, and my husband even got a few sunburned spots!
My camera system for this journey: Tokina AT-X Macro 90mm F2.5, MD W.Rokkor 24mm F2.8, MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4, and the Sony A7C with Urth MD to FE adapter. Taken with my iPhone 13 Mini. This lightweight system is easy to hike 20-30km a day with.
National Museum of Scotland at Calton Hill. Sony A7C + Minolta MD Rokkor 24mm F2.8.
Three days is absolutely too short to explore Edinburgh! We managed to do a haunted catacombs tour with Auld Rekkie tours (I was too scared to pull out my camera), went for a trip at the Edinburgh Dungeon attraction, marvelled at the Camera Obscura, toured the Edinburgh castle accompanied by their audio guide, went up and down the city looking for delicious plant-based munch, and toured the Royal Mile while listening to Kat Milne’s History of Witchcraft in Scotland.
We then took a train to North Queensferry to start our hike of the Fife Coastal Path. Macs Adventure took care of our luggage for us and helped us with the booking of the B&Bs and hotels along the way, so all that’s left to do is pack enough water, snacks, and my camera for each day’s journey!
The famous Forth Rail Bridge, a UNESCO Heritage Site and engineering marvel—it was the longest cantilever bridge when it was completed in the late 19th century. Sony A7C + Tokina AT-X Macro 90mm F2.5.
Same place, same angle, just different lens! Sony A7C + MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4.
We reached Carlingnose Point Natural Reserve first thing in our hike. These cliffs are supposed to look like faces when viewed far from shore.. Sony A7C + Tokina AT-X Macro 90mm F2.5.
Reaching Dalgety Bay. Sony A7C + MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4.
A little library in the middle of the forested part of the path! Sony A7C + MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4
The second day took us close to the water’s edge. The sun was slightly hidden behind some morning clouds, allowing me to take some ‘classic Scottish’ coastal pictures before the sky turned into a brilliant blue.
Someone please let me shoot your prewedding here! Sony A7C + MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4
The sun climbed higher and the sky turned cerulean as we approached Kirkcaldy—the beaches vary between rocky and smooth, but they are all breathtakingly beautiful. This was also the day we spotted seals basking belly-up in the rocks near the shore. Sony A7C + MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4.
I can’t remember which village this is—I think it might be Dysart! All the coastal villages and towns we passed through were so pretty and quaint. Sony A7C + MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4.
The third day was our shortest day, but it had some of the prettiest sights as the path took us through Dunbarnie Links Nature Reserve, and also the most fun as we tried the Elie Chainwalk!
The beachgrass ruffles in the wind—just across from them is already the sea. Sony A7C + MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4.
The chain walk at Elie! These cliffs used to be ancient volcanos and the rocks that dot the landscape here are a geologist’s dreams. The 8 chains are suspended vertically and horizontally across the path and you use them to climb or traverse the cliff face. It’s not very scary because they’ve also etched convenient foot holds into the rocks so you will always have a very secure grip. Sony A7C + MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4.
Just as we were about to descend into the chain walk we happened to be staring into the blue waters beyond the shore, and there was that deep dark footprint ahead of us. I thought at first it was a rock that was just submerged by the water, but a fin and then a tail popped up, followed by another one! We’re still not sure if we saw 2 whales or dolphins (I would have thought dolphins are usually found in a larger pod, and the figures we saw reminded me more of the whales we saw in Boston during our whale-watching cruise), but it was a very lucky and magical coincidence!
We reached The Ship Inn at Elie just in time for lunch and we waited a while for our room to be ready—we decided to go kayaking instead of waiting anyway to make best use of our time! We rented a tandem kayak from the lovely proprietors of Elie Watersports—the boss lady was a bit horrified at the idea of us going out in just shorts, and we rented extra wetsuits from them. It was our first time kayaking in a cold sea—I underestimated how strong and chilly the wind would be as the sun was high and bright! I thought my hands were going to be frozen to the paddle.
Making a slight detour to visit the Elie Lighthouse we paddled to see the day before. Sony A7C + MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4.
The pretty little fishing village of Crail! It is famous for its inner harbour which had apparently inspired many artists through the ages. Sony A7C + MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4.
As Macs Adventure couldn’t book us any room in Crail and St Andrews (we assume the rooms are fully booked by golfers taking advantage of the long weekend), we spent the next two days hustling to the day’s destination to catch a pre-arranged and pre-paid taxi to our last accommodation at Lillian May B&B at Newport-on-Tay. It was a little bit of a blessing in disguise as Lillian May was such a cozy and warm place to stay at. We were very close to Dundee, but unfortunately we didn't have time (or energy) to pop by. There was apparently a music festival headlined by The Jonas Brothers while we were there (and of course, Harry Style was performing at Edinburgh that weekend and was also spotted golfing at St Andrews as well).
The next day had some of the more challenging terrains of the whole trip between Crail and St Andrews as we had to navigate some rocky coastal trails, cliffs, golf courses, and cows.
The North Carr Beacon Site—this is where Robert Stevenson (not the writer, but his architect grandfather) erected a stone beacon to warn incoming vessels of the treacherous reefs that had claimed many ships before. The beacon was built on-site and the remain of the base is still etched here into the rocks, which is also the only remnant of the beacon left as it had since been lost to the sea. Sony A7C + Minolta MD Rokkor 24mm F2.8.
Our last day’s walk from St Andrews to Newport-on-Tay was our longest at 30km, but it was a little bit easier than the previous day’s as it was mostly flat terrains. We crossed the river Eden, walked through the Tentsmuir Nature Reserve (and saw many horses!), and eventually reached Tayport before the final stretch to Newport.
Private yachts docked at Tayport’s harbour. Sony A7C + Tokina AT-X Macro 90mm F2.5.
While our tour ended at Newport-on-Tay, we discovered that the Fife Coastal Path still stretches ahead, tracing the Tay until Newburgh (mostly because we still saw more direction signs for the Path even at the end of our supposed destination). It’s a bummer we didn’t truly complete it, but it’s something to look forward to one day.
We left Newport-on-Tay for London in order to catch our flight back to Singapore. We still managed to squeeze a play at the Globe (a Comedy of Errors) and a leisurely kayak trip at the Richmond part of the Thames in south-west London. After our fourth kayak trip this month, I really wish I have a way to bring my camera on board with me safely.
The Shakespeare Globe! This was taken right after we took a seat and well before the play started—I always abide by rules to not take any photos or videos! Sony A7C + MC Rokkor 58mm F1.4.
London Bridge Station. Sony A7C + MD W.Rokkor 24mm F2.8
London Bridge (but new). Sony A7C + MD W.Rokkor 24mm F2.8
I never thought of myself as a landscape or adventure photographer, but I had definitely been bitten by a hiking bug (and a lot of midges) in this journey, and I can feel that primal yearning deep in my bones to explore, to wander and experience wonder and awe. The marvels of geography and the scattering of history that I saw made me feel so small and reminded me I am an insignificant part of the universe—or as someone close to me likes to say, we are just an expression of the universe. Being able to go on this trip is a massive privilege and luck and I am so so grateful for this opportunity. I hope to be able to go on more adventures soon, and I hope more people can too.
Bonus:
This is the closest my lens could reach the seals—an argument to bring a bigger telephoto lens for next time? They were just lying there, belly up, living their best lives! Sony A7C + Tokina AT-X Macro 90mm F2.5.
A 100% zoom of the seals (and also just a show of how sharp the Tokina is even with the A7C’s 24.2 MP sensor)!
Some of these photos are available to be purchased for personal prints or commercial licensing! Please feel free to contact me if you’re interested.
