Gullane Point – Over the Dunes to the Mouth of the Bay
About 4.7 miles on foot.
Gullane Bents is one of the best-loved beaches on the East Lothian coast, a wide sandy bay backed by dunes on the edge of a famous golfing village.
This circuit wanders over the dunes and along the sand to Gullane Point, the headland at the west end of the bay, with the Firth of Forth and the hills of Fife in front of you. It's seven and a half kilometres and takes two to two and a half hours.
- Time
- Two to two and a half hours: a circuit of 7.5 km (4.7 miles) on grassy paths, tracks and sandy beach.
- The path
- Grassy paths, tracks through the dunes and soft sand. There is a wheelchair viewing area at the car park.
- Where to start
- Gullane Bents car park, signposted from the A198 at the west end of Gullane. £3 a day by pay and display or RingGo, charged 8am to 4pm from October to March and 8am to 6.30pm from April to September; the ticket is good at any East Lothian coastal car park that day. No parking between 11pm and 4am.
- When to go
- All year in daylight. Fieldfares feed on the sea buckthorn in winter. From November to January set off by noon.
- Dogs
- Under close control, and kept off the golf courses.
- Children
- A big sandy beach at the start. The full round is five miles, so it suits children who are used to a walk.
- Toilets
- At the Gullane Bents car park, with accessible and Changing Places toilets and baby changing.
- Before you set out
- Some of the way runs beside golf courses: keep to the path and watch for play.
The walk
Park at Gullane Bents, signposted from the A198 coast road at the west end of Gullane. It's a big car park beside the beach. Parking is £3 a day by pay and display or RingGo, charged from 8am to 4pm between October and March, and the ticket is good at any of East Lothian's coastal car parks that day. There are toilets here, with accessible and Changing Places toilets and baby changing. Visit East Lothian gives the Gullane circular as 7.5 km, a little under five miles, and allows two to two and a half hours.
It's easy walking on grassy paths, tracks and sandy beach. The bay in front of the car park is a wide curve of sand backed by dunes. Much of the dune has been planted with sea buckthorn to hold the sand in place, and in winter big flocks of fieldfares come to feed on it. West of the bay is Gullane Point, the headland at its mouth, where the Firth of Forth opens out in front of you with Fife on the far shore. The round also passes concrete tank traps left from the Second World War, the edge of Muirfield, the links that has hosted the Open Championship, and the site of St Patrick's Chapel, which was standing in the early 1500s.
Some of the way runs beside golf courses, so keep to the path, watch for play and keep dogs under close control. Gullane's main street, about ten minutes' walk from the car park, has cafés, shops and restaurants. From November to January, set off by noon.
If it rains
There's no shelter on the dunes or the beach, and the wind comes straight off the firth. Keep this one for a dry day, or cut it short with a walk along the bay and back.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
Where to eat
The Bonnie Badger, a restaurant in Gullane.
For further reading, before you go.
Photograph by Tom Young via Google