Cullykhan Bay – A Sandy Cove, an Old Fort and Hell's Lum
About 0.8 miles on foot.
A mile west of Pennan, a steep path drops to a small sandy cove with a rocky headland beside it.
People have defended that headland since prehistoric times, and on its far side the sea has cut a deep cleft called Hell's Lum. The walk is short, about 1.3 km, and the white cottages of Pennan are a mile down the road for afterwards.
- Time
- About an hour: around 1.3 km (0.8 miles), with a steep path and wooden steps to the beach and a rougher path onto Castle Point.
- The path
- A steep path with wooden steps to the sand, and rough, rocky ground on the headland.
- Where to start
- The Cullykhan car park, at the end of a rough track signed off the B9031 about a mile west of Pennan. Free.
- Set off
- From November to January, arrive by 2pm.
- When to go
- All year in daylight, on a day without a gale. From November to January be at Cullykhan by 2pm. The Pennan Inn serves dinner from Wednesday to Sunday.
- Dogs
- On a lead on Castle Point, where the edges are sheer.
- Children
- The sandy cove suits children. Hell's Lum and the cliffs on the point are unfenced: hold small hands there, or stay on the sand.
- Toilets
- None here: the nearest are at Pennan village hall, a mile east.
- Before you set out
- The edges of Hell's Lum and the cliffs on Castle Point are sheer and unfenced. Keep away from them in a high wind.
The walk
The Cullykhan car park is at the end of a rough track, signed off the B9031 about a mile west of Pennan. It's free, and there are no toilets. Walkhighlands gives the walk as about 1.3 km and 40 minutes, though it's a place to linger. A steep path with wooden steps drops to a small sandy cove held between grassy points, and a rougher path leads out onto Castle Point, the rocky headland beside it.
The humps in the turf out there are what is left of Fort Fiddes, a coastal battery of the late 1600s. When the site was dug in the late 1960s and early 1970s, it turned out that people had been defending this headland since prehistoric times. From the point you look east along the cliffs towards Pennan, and down into Hell's Lum, a sea cave whose roof has partly fallen in to leave a deep cleft running through to the sea. Lum is the Scots word for a chimney, and in wild weather the swell is forced up it and bursts out as spray.
The edges of the Lum are sheer and have no fence, and the cliffs round the point are the same. Keep dogs on a lead up there, and keep children down on the sand unless you can hold their hands. Wear boots, as the steps and the headland are slippery after rain. From November to January, be here by 2pm.
If it rains
There's no shelter at Cullykhan and the steps are slippery when wet. On a wild day, Hell's Lum is at its most dramatic, but keep well back from every edge, or go straight to Pennan and watch the sea come in along the front.
Afterwards
Pennan
An attraction
Pennan is a mile east, at the foot of a steep, narrow road: take it in first gear and watch for cars coming up. There's a small free car park at the west end of the front, with public toilets at the village hall beside it. The village is a single row of white cottages squeezed between the cliff and the sea. Parts of the film Local Hero, released in 1983, were shot here, and the red telephone box on the front opposite the Pennan Inn is one of the best known in the world. Walk along to the harbour and back. The Pennan Inn is the only place to eat in the village. It serves dinner only, Wednesday to Sunday from 5pm to 9pm, and it's small, so book on 01346 561201.
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 Pennan Inn, a restaurant in Pennan.
Coastal Cuppie, a café in Pennan.
For further reading, before you go.