We left Stonehaven on a morning too wet to explore the ruins of the old chapel on the cliffs. Closer to Aberdeen we left the A92 and took a minor road around the coast. We passed a rare breeds farm near Doonies Hill.

Major works are underway to expand the harbour in Aberdeen and piles of the of concrete blocks were by the shore. We passed the ruined St Fittick’s Church but were diverted from following the road past the lighthouse and around the point. Further on we could back-track and sat for a while watching ships waiting to enter the harbour.

Over the Bridge of Dee, we drove up the beach front and managed a walk after the rain had stopped. I found a good haul of sea glass.

After crossing the River Don, we diverted to Scotstown Moor Nature Reserve which is also known as Perwinnes Moss.

We then spent the night with friends who live in the Aberdeenshire countryside and returned to the coastal route in the morning. There is a huge new conference centre being built near Dyce and the airport. The older one is in Bridge of Don and is to be closed. Before the rain returned, we had a walk on Balmedie Beach which I remembered from my student days. It is now a country park.

Height barriers prevented us parking by Forvie National Nature Reserve or on the car parks on the banks of the River Ythan. Instead, we diverted down a B road to Collieston and Kirkton of Slain, former fishing communities. There are many caves and small coves along the shore which were used for smuggling foreign spirits in the 18th century to avoid paying taxes. There is a coastal path along to Cruden Bay. The pier was constructed in the late 19th century and renovated in the 1950s.

Sand martins were flying around, eider ducks on the water and gulls perching on the rocks. There were steps up to a viewpoint and paths round to the small harbour and café.

Before we arrived in Cruden Bay, we passed the rather impressive St James’s Church on Chapel Hill and then drove through the village to the Brit Stop at Port Erroll harbour where we celebrated our 32nd wedding anniversary.

In the morning we had a quiet walk through woodland onto the cliffs and the ruined Slains Castle. It was built in the 16th century by the Earl of Errol, the previous old Slains Castle having been destroyed by James VI after the Earl of Errol supported a plot against him. In 1597 the Earl returned from exile and began to construct the tower house. It was extended in 1664 and again in 1836. In 1916 the 20th Earl sold it in lieu of death duties and the owner let it become ruined. The roof was removed in 1925 for the materials to be used elsewhere. Bram Stoker is said to have stayed in the castle and used it as inspiration for his Dracula story. Other famous visitors were Dr Samuel Johnson and James Boswell.


We met a few dog walkers en route. Re-joining the A90 the road continues to Peterhead. However, we had a small diversion through Boddam to the harbour and Buchan Ness Lighthouse.

On the way into Peterhead the road passes HMP & YOI Grampian. The old prison which operated from 1888 to 2013 became a museum in 2016. Peterhead prison was known as Scotland’s roughest and there were many notorious escapes and riots, some of which I remember hearing about in the news. The old prison building came into being because in the late 19th century the government decided that a harbour needed constructing on the north coast of Scotland. Peterhead was chosen and granite from a nearby quarry was to be used. A cost-cutting exercise decided that convicts would provide the labour for this breakwater. It took 78 years to build and the prisoners were transported to the quarry in a purpose-built railway, the first state-owned one in Britain. In 1956 both the quarry and railway ceased to operate.

Before we left the town, we wandered around the centre, noticing that it had as many closed shops as other towns in the UK. In the 1970s Peterhead had become an oil industry service centre and had a gas terminal but more recently many companies have left. Fishing remains important. We escaped from the town to relax in the countryside before beginning the journey home. We completed 247 miles on this leg bringing the total so far to 338.