Hidden Scotland
Sign in
A walk · Hopeman

Hopeman – Painted Beach Huts, the Pagoda and a Sandstone Cove

Hopeman East Beach

Hopeman is a fishing village on the Moray coast with a curve of pale sand on its east side and a row of painted beach huts along the top of it.

A paved path runs from Harbour Street to the Pagoda, a viewpoint above the beach, and it's a mile there and back. Clashach Cove, a small bay under sandstone cliffs, lies a little further along the coast.

Time
About 20 minutes for the mile to the Pagoda and back, or half an hour for the mile and a half by Lodge Lane. Allow an hour with time on the sand.
The path
Paved, generally level and without barriers from Harbour Street to the Pagoda. The Lodge Lane loop has a gravel stretch and short steep sections and does not suit wheelchairs or buggies.
Where to start
The East Beach car park, at the foot of Harbour Street in Hopeman.
When to go
All year in daylight. The viewpoint is exposed in a strong wind, and Lodge Lane is muddy after rain.
Children
Short and level, with sand and rocks at the end of it.
Before you set out
The viewpoint is exposed in a strong wind. In December the sun sets at about half past three.

The walk

Park at the East Beach car park at the foot of Harbour Street in Hopeman. The beach is right there, a curve of pale sand below the dunes with a row of painted huts along the top. A paved, level path runs from the surgery on Harbour Street past the car park and up a short gravel track to the Pagoda, a small roofed shelter on the rise above the sand.

The whole bay is laid out below it, and dolphins are sometimes seen offshore. It's a mile there and back, about 20 minutes without stops. For a little more, the way past the beach huts and up Lodge Lane makes a mile and a half.

Clashach Cove, a small bay under sandstone cliffs, is a little further east along the coast, on a rougher path than the paved walk. From mid October to March the days are short, the Pagoda catches the wind and Lodge Lane is muddy after rain.

If it rains

There's no shelter on the beach and the Pagoda is open to the wind. In heavy rain keep to the paved mile and leave Lodge Lane and the cove for a dry day.

Before you go

  1. Book accommodation nearby

    If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.

    Callie Bothy9 miles awayCallie BothySleeps 2The Gatehouse9 miles awayThe GatehouseSleeps 4Innes House9 miles awayInnes HouseSleeps 38Viewfield Farmhouse9 miles awayViewfield FarmhouseSleeps 8
Find out more

For further reading, before you go.