Dysart – A Rock-Cut Harbour and a Castle Built for Guns
Dysart's harbour is partly carved out of the rock, with the red-tiled cottages of Pan Ha' and a 13th-century church tower beside it.
From here the Fife Coastal Path goes west for 1.7 km to Ravenscraig Castle, a great ruin on a wooded point above the beach. It also goes east for 3.4 km to the old coal port of West Wemyss, a rougher walk that needs care.
- Time
- About an hour to Ravenscraig Castle and back, 1.7 km each way; about two hours to West Wemyss and back, 3.4 km each way.
- The path
- Big steps on the way to Ravenscraig; erosion and a scramble on the way to West Wemyss. Not for wheelchairs or pushchairs.
- Where to start
- Dysart harbour. Free.
- When to go
- All year in daylight. Keep the stretch to West Wemyss for a dry day and a low tide. From November to January set off for West Wemyss by 12.30pm.
- Children
- The walk to the castle suits children; the eroded stretch to West Wemyss does not suit small ones.
- Toilets
- In the Harbourmaster's House at Dysart harbour.
- Before you set out
- The path towards West Wemyss has coastal erosion and needs a bit of scrambling: take care. The castle is seen from the park and the shore.
The walk
Park at Dysart harbour, where there's a free car park, and toilets in the Harbourmaster's House. Dysart is a royal burgh that goes back to the 7th century, and its harbour was in part cut straight out of the rock. Beside the sea wall stand St Serf's Tower, from the 13th century, and the restored red-tiled cottages of Pan Ha'. The Fife Coastal Path leads both ways from the harbour, and there are two walks to choose from. The short one goes west for 1.7 km to Ravenscraig Castle, about half an hour each way, on a path with some big steps.
The castle stands on a wooded point above a sandy beach in Ravenscraig Park. It was begun in 1460 for Mary of Gueldres, the queen of James II, and it was built to stand up to guns, with walls 3.5 metres thick. The longer walk goes east for 3.4 km to West Wemyss, about an hour each way. It passes the winding gear of the Frances Colliery on the skyline and ends at a harbour that once shipped coal and salt to the Continent. This stretch is harder.
The Fife Coast and Countryside Trust, which looks after the path, warns of coastal erosion on the way to West Wemyss and says a bit of scrambling is needed. Keep it for a dry day and a low tide, wear boots, and turn back if the shore looks bad. Small children are better off on the walk to the castle. Come back the same way. From November to January, set off for West Wemyss by 12.30pm.
If it rains
The path is open to the Forth all the way. In rain, keep to the harbour and the short walk to the castle, and leave West Wemyss for another day.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
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For further reading, before you go.