Culross – Cobbled Lanes, the Forth Shore and a Pub Lunch
A few hours.
The route
Culross is a little royal burgh on the Firth of Forth, all cobbled lanes, whitewashed and ochre houses and red pantile roofs, and the Fife Coastal Path runs along its shore.
The afternoon is a wander through the old streets, a walk along the water, then lunch at the Red Lion on the main street.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
The day
Culross
It's an easy afternoon by the water, with old stone at every turn. Up the cobbles to the Mercat Cross, down to the shore and out along the firth, then back into the village hungry.
About three hoursAbout 2 miles on foot
Culross
Park in the West car park by the play park, the bigger of the village's two free car parks, where there are toilets with a small charge. Culross grew rich on coal and salt in the 16th and 17th centuries, and the National Trust for Scotland has cared for its old buildings since the 1930s, among them the ochre palace built for Sir George Bruce. A short wander takes in the palace on Low Causeway, the Mercat Cross, the old market cross, at the top of the cobbles and the shore below. From the shore the Fife Coastal Path, graded easy, runs east beside the Firth of Forth towards Torryburn, three miles away, past the Torry Bay nature reserve, with wading birds on the shore in winter and terns in summer. Walk out as far as you like and come back the same way. The climb up to the abbey ruin above the village is steep, so leave it for another day if legs are tired.
About 6 min on foot
The Red Lion, Culross
Lunch
Lunch is at the Red Lion on Low Causeway, 400 metres east of the car park, so it comes on the walk back. The village inn is run by a community society and serves food every day from noon to 9pm: traditional pub dishes, with daily specials on the boards and separate menus for vegans, for anyone avoiding gluten and for children.
If it rains
The shore path is open to the weather. On a wet afternoon, keep to the cobbled streets for a short wander and let lunch at the Red Lion run long; the cobbles are slippery in the wet, so take them slowly.
The Red Lion, Culross, a restaurant in Culross.
The Mercat, Culross, a café in Culross.