BEACHCOMBERS-JOURNAL

LADY'S TOWER - ELIE FIFE, SCOTLAND Lady's Tower at Sauchar Point, Elie, Fife. "the tower is a Cat-C listed building" FASCINATING BUILDINGS Another little building with a fascinating history. This is Lady’s Tower located at Sauchar Point near the Scottish village of Elie in Fife. The tower is next to the Fife Coastal Path on the edge of The Firth of Forth, and there is parking nearby at Ruby Bay car park south of Elie. HISTORY Lady’s Tower was built in 1770 for Lady Janet Anstruther (nee Janet Fall) the wife of Sir John Anstruther (2nd Baronet). Lady Janet used it as a summer house, she would sit there enjoying the view across the Firth of Forth, and while away the time after her daily swims. The building did not always look this derelict; it is reputed to have still had a roof, glazed windows, a door, a fireplace and plastered interior walls during the early 1900’s. The tower is now a listed building. Below the tower on the beach there is a man-made cave built into t...

THE BASS ROCK NORTH BERWICK, SCOTLAND Bass Rock - view from Canty Bay "The Bass Rock on the Firth of Forth - the curious white island!" LOCATION The Bass Rock is a small rocky island in the Firth of Forth estuary on the east coast of Scotland. It is located 1 mile offshore and about 3 miles northeast of the East Lothian town of North Berwick . I have tried twice to photograph it; neither visit was a total success. I have had to contend with either misty light rain or a severe gale. But this is the nature of the territory on this north east coast; it’s totally exposed to the elements and the North Sea. GEOLOGY Bass Rock is a volcanic plug . It formed inside the lava vent of a volcano some 300 million years ago (Carboniferous Period). The big numbers in geology never cease to impress me, especially when compared to our own short lives. When the structure of the rock was examined it was found to have large crystals, indicating that the molten rock ( lava ) from which the island ...