I mostly discover the existence of walkable old rail routes by scanning through online maps. Sometimes I'll spot evidence of a path while out and about. On a drive to North Berwick, I saw a sign for a railway walk from Longniddry Station to Haddington and it was duly added to the never ending list. The time had come to place boots on the line and I drove out to East Lothian on a warm Sunday morning. It was cloudy early doors but the forecast suggested the day would brighten up around noon. There was ample parking at Longniddry Station - a commuter halt on the East Coast Main Line - and I passed underneath the tracks to hook up with the old branch railway to Haddington.
An express train hurtled by and I walked virtually parallel to the main line for a few hundred yards before the branch route began to curve away. The Haddington Railway opened in 1846 and served the agricultural centre of East Lothian - a county known interchangeably as Haddingtonshire and long regarded as the Garden of Scotland. Coal, cattle and crops were transported and special passengers trains put on for the weekly market. Freight usage continued until 1968 but passenger services had ceased 20 years previously due to increased competition from buses and the advent of the private car. Like many abandoned routes, the former trackbed functions as an important wildlife corridor among the intensively farmed fields. Wildflowers proliferate along the footpath and the verges are actively managed to allow native species to thrive and provide a food source for caterpillars, butterflies and moths. There were no intermediate stations between the junction at Longniddry and the terminus at East Lothian's county town. Two sets of sidings were provided for loading en route. I soon caught sight of Redhouse Castle across the fields - an unmissable local landmark. A side path ran across to the ruined 16th-century red sandstone tower house and walkers were invited to visit the plant nursery now occupying the castle gardens and enjoy refreshments in the tearoom. Unfortunately my schedule didn't permit a detour. A shame, because the facilities looked excellent on the website. The four-storey castle was remodelled into an L-plan by the Duke of Hamilton but the family forfeited the property in the aftermath of the 1745 Jacobite rising. Colonel George Hamilton - the final owner/occupier - was hung, drawn and quartered for high treason at Carlisle. Having been abandoned for many years, Redhouse was incorporated into the estates of the Earl of Wemyss who resided at Gosford House close by. Fortunately the castle escaped the fate of becoming a read-made sandstone quarry and today the building stands prominently among the surrounding agricultural landscape.
Also easy to spot from the path was the Hopetoun Monument on Byers Hill. Apparently the summit provides an overview of the entire low-lying county and I did read somewhere that the tower can be climbed via the cramped winding staircase within - 132 steps in total, leading to a viewing platform. When autumn arrives, the amazing spectacle of thousands of pink-footed geese descending to feed can be witnessed, as the birds pause on their migration south from Iceland. Standing 95 feet tall, the monument was erected in 1824 as a tribute to John Hope, the 4th Earl of Hopetoun. I'll definitely come back at some point to tackle this small hill. I could also do Traprain Law on the other side of Haddington. Hope had a distinguished military career, commanding a division under the Duke of Wellington during the Peninsular War - a Iberian conflict involving Britain, Spain and Portugal. He is also commemorated by a similar tower near Cupar, Fife. The railway terminated half a mile short of Haddington town centre and horse-drawn omnibuses were on hand to provide an onward connection. Amazingly, in the computerised 21st century, we struggle to integrate bus and rail timetables. Through trains to Edinburgh were introduced and there was talk of doubling the line. However, the Great North Road (now the A1 in this area) was progressively improved and buses began to run at regular intervals, abstracting revenue from the railway. When closure was announced in 1948, there was a predictable public outcry, somewhat muted by the town clerk's observation that each train carried an average of three passengers. Despite the romantic notion of a steam locomotive chuffing through the countryside on a branch line, the harsh economic reality tells a rather different story. The people of the day chose not to use it, and boy did they lose it.
I passed a man-made pond that had been fashioned from an old water tank - a good example of vanished heavy industry being repurposed for nature. The line began to slope gradually downhill towards Haddington and I walked below the A1 and continued along a tarmac footpath with new housing alongside. The walking route doesn't go all the way to the old station, due to residential development. Instead, you are diverted on to the pavement by the B6471 for the final stretch. I immediately recognised the site of the railway terminus with its red-brick abutment. A small public park is situated between the station and the road. Various examples of mock railway signage are pleasingly embedded into the metal boundary fence. Original buildings remain alongside the walkway up to the old line level. It was nice to see surviving architecture and - most surprisingly - I unearthed a report (dated 2021) proposing the return of a rail service to Haddington. Perhaps it's not that much of a shock. A lot of traditional industry has disappeared from the Lothian towns and many people now commute to the capital city. The drive from Haddington will grind to a halt when you hit the Edinburgh bypass and must be a frustrating daily experience. The bus probably fares a little better - with dedicated lanes - but you can't avoid all the traffic jams. Trains could whisk people in and out of the city with great efficiency but the stumbling block with many of these reopening schemes is often the massive amount of capital investment required to overcome obstacles now standing where the line once ran. In the case of Haddington, it seems perfectly feasible - from an engineering perspective - to site a new station on the outskirts, but that defeats to a certain extent the purpose of reintroducing the branch line. That's before you take the naysayers and local NIMBY brigade into consideration. It's an interesting development, one worth keeping an eye on. Let's hope it doesn't descend into an endless series of feasibility studies which achieve little more than leeching away funds. Interesting how language such as "we cannot bring the railway into the town centre" is routinely employed nowadays, whereas Victorian planners and engineers quickly realised you can't cook an omelette without breaking a few eggs.
The counter argument that many people enjoy the availability of the walking and cycling route is of course valid. But we cannot constantly harp on about the need to reduce carbon emissions while simultaneously rejecting railway schemes which, while not quite oven ready, are largely in place as far as infrastructure goes. Besides, there are existing examples in Scotland of lines that have started operating again with the stunningly simple arrangement of moving an existing cycle track to run alongside. Plus the presence of a railway makes these pleasure routes more accessible to all. Food for thought! I wandered towards the town centre and it soon became apparent that Haddington is stuffed full of architectural gems. I inspected a tall stone pillar and statue dedicated to local politician and mineral collector Robert Ferguson (1769-1840), originally a native of Kirkcaldy. The inscription describes Ferguson as a great distributor of wealth and from that I assume he bestowed gifts upon his adopted homeland of East Lothian, where he served as a Member of Parliament for the county and owned substantial estates. A leading light in the Whig party, he also represented Fife during his political career. Ferguson's mineral knowledge saw him elected a fellow of the Societies of London and Edinburgh, as well as having a rock named after him. He also managed to become entangled in a high-profile divorce-case involving the aristocracy and was successfully sued for today's equivalent of £5 million. I reached the High Street and noticed the imposing Post Office building that - although closed on Sundays - still appeared to be in general use. A real throwback to the days before this service was relegated in many towns and cities to far corners within retail premises. I was looking forward to seeing Haddington Town House but the grand building was wreathed in scaffolding. Completed in 1745, the civic chambers were designed in the Scottish Baronial style. Sadly all of this was hidden from view today but a major refurbishment can only be a good thing in the long term. The Corn Exchange had the year 1854 carved into the stonework above the motif. The former trading house is currently serving as a Covid vaccination centre but appears to be available for hire during more normal times. The Mercat Cross is unusually topped by the figure of a goat, not the only caprine imagery in the town. The present red sandstone structure dates from the 19th century but a centuries old market town would obviously have had a similar installation in days gone by.
Just around the corner stood a sculpture depicting two goats butting each other. This particular work has only been in place since 1978 but the goat is a symbol of Haddington and appears on the town's coat of arms - although nobody seems exactly sure about the origins. The River Tyne was just a short stroll from the far end of the High Street and I headed down to the banks for a wander. Presumably the water at one time powered the town's mills but today the emphasis is firmly on leisure, with a signposted walkway providing a pleasant views and a busy bistro situated on the other side. As I walked over to examine St Mary's Collegiate Church, I came across a group of people playing French boules on a purpose-built lawn - the first time I had ever witnessed the game in this country. The Tyne (not to be confused with the river that flows through northeast England) rises to the south of Edinburgh and enters the North Sea near Dunbar after a 30-mile journey. The three-arch Nungate Bridge was built in the 16th century and is now carries pedestrians over the river, although at one time it would have been a main route into town and indeed one of the few places where travellers could safely cross the Tyne. Further upstream, St Mary's Church overlooks the river and is surrounded by an extensive graveyard. The 14th-century place of worship is of cathedral proportions and is built in Gothic style. It is indeed the longest church in the country at over 200 feet from east to west. Renovated throughout in the 1970s, it forms an impressive backdrop to the river stroll. Protestant reformer John Knox is believed to have been born in the vicinity of St Mary's and records show he was ordained at the church, although it is not known if he actually preached here.
I popped into the Tyneside Tavern for a well-earned refreshment. The premises are split between the traditional pub and an Italian restaurant. Upon entering the main door, you turn left for the "drinkery" or right for the eatery. I plumped for the former option and walked into an immaculate bar with wooden fittings. I spotted the cask ale pump dispensing Harviestoun Bitter & Twisted and ordered a pint. The beer - originally brewed on a farm near Dollar - is well-known among aficionados and has won numerous awards over the years. The Harviestoun Brewery is now based on an industrial estate near Alva. Nobody else was in the bar and I sat down to review my photos and rest my legs before I began the return trip. The direct bus service to Longniddry doesn't run on Sundays but I had decided in advance to walk both ways. Ten miles in total isn't usually a problem but I was suffering from stiffness after resuming my Friday five-a-side football at work. My body was telling me a completely different set of muscles had been used for that activity. I did find the pace of the game hard going but came through without doing any damage to myself - which was the main goal. Having already taken my photos and read the information boards on the trail, I walked back to the car without stopping. Haddington is well worth a visit and you could spend a pleasant day here. Unfortunately the small town museum doesn't open on Sundays but I'm planning to return to the area to scale the two small hills with the big views.
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