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WALK 5

Berwick-upon-Tweed to Eyemouth

Start	Small parking area at the start of Berwick Pier (NU 005 527)
Finish	Bus stop beside Co-op’s car park in Eyemouth (NT 944 644)
Distance	16.4km (10¼ miles)
Total ascent	595m (1950ft)
Grade	3
Walking time	5½hr
Terrain	Mostly cliff-top paths; field paths; quiet lanes
Maps	OS Explorer 346; OS Landranger 75 and 67 (both required)
Transport	Start and finish points are linked by buses 34, 60, 235, 236, 253 and 260
Facilities	Cafés and pubs in Berwick-upon-Tweed and Eyemouth; public toilets at Greens Haven

Much of Northumberland’s coast is fairly flat, but this all changes north of Berwick-upon-Tweed. To sample the rugged cliffs of Berwickshire, this linear walk starts in Northumberland but later crosses the Scottish border to end in the attractive harbour town of Eyemouth. Relatively low-lying red sandstone cliffs give way to higher, more dramatic cliffs as the generally well-signposted Berwickshire Coast Path makes its way north.

This is the first of two walks in the book that venture beyond Northumberland’s borders.

Head down the walled lane opposite the small parking area at the start of Berwick Pier. Follow it up a short slope and then, when it bends left, take the path on the right (no signpost). This heads out along the edge of the cliff-top golf course.

Soon after the Coastwatch lookout, you reach a junction of paths. Take the clear path to the right (not the one heading sharp right, which just leads to a golf tee). This leads to the Greens Haven car park, which has public toilets. Follow the car park’s access lane inland for about 50m and then take the path on the right – not the surfaced path leading down into Fishermen’s Haven, but the grassy path running along the seaward side of the holiday park’s low fence.

Red sandstone cliffs near Berwick

Eventually, the path and fence swing inland. Now watch for a fingerpost, where you turn sharp right to cross a bridge and return to the cliff-top proper – signposted Marshall Meadows. At the height of summer, this trail can be rather overgrown as its winds its way along the top of the low cliffs. In spring and summer, watch for nesting fulmars and kittiwakes around the rocks of Needles Eye. These are only low cliffs, but there are a surprising number of caves cut into them as well as a few rocky pinnacles that are on their way to becoming off-shore stacks. It’s a dramatic place to be on a wild day when the waves are battering the rocks below.

After a ladder stile, turn right along the main track through the Marshall Meadows holiday park. Keep left at any forks until you see a lane going left across the railway. Bear right here and keep right to follow a fenced path back out to the cliffs.