Dalgety Bay Aberdour Circuit

A short circular walk between Dalgety Bay and Aberdour utilising the coastal path and returning via woodlands and field edges. The basic route can be lengthened by including a circuit of Hawkcraig Point. Exploration of Braefoot Woods and the Monks Cave could also be included in this walk.

Distance: 6 km / 3.7 miles (10 km / 6.2 miles if including Hawkcraig Point)
Ascent: 60m / 200 feet (120 m / 400 feet if including Hawkcraig Point)
Terrain: Surfaced coastal path, but also trodden woodland paths and field edges that can be muddy.
Start / finish: Cornerstone Church Dalgety Bay KY3 0RY

Route Map

Commence the walk from the Cornerstone Church at the eastern end of Dalgety Bay where there is room to park on the road (there is also a bus service to this area). Walk uphill in a southerly direction on a farm access road heading towards the coast. The road soon starts to go downhill. After about 500m the official route of the coastal path heads off to the left along The Avenue. There is a choice of routes at this point.

Go left along The Avenue on the coastal path route. This is a good route in Spring when the daffodils are in bloom.
Or keep straight on downhill to the ruin of St Bridget’s Kirk. Turn left at the kirk along the lower path. Keep left at a junction (right goes to the water treatment plant). After passing the entrance to Braefoot Woods, a constructed path goes left, across the field to re-join the upper (coastal path) route where you should turn right.
A variation on option 2, is to walk in front of St Bridget’s Kirk (the coastal side) and use a woodland path along the coastline. The path will rejoin the the tarmac track close to the water treatment works.

On reaching the Braefoot road, either cross over the road or use the underpass. The Avenue now continues alongside the golf course to reach Aberdour. There are good snowdrops at the Braefoot end in the early part of the year. The path passes through a gate and joins a road for a short walk out to the main road passing a lodge and “sun gates”.

For the shorter route turn left here along the pavement. For an optional circuit around Hawkcraig Point turn right.

Hawcraig Point option

Follow the route of the coastal path right into Aberdour, turning right down Shore Road. At the bottom of Shore Road, the coastal path goes left around Aberdour Harbour. Stay with the obvious path along Lady’s Walk and then up a series of stone steps. The route climbs up to the top of the cliffs and the descends on the opposite side. The path joins a tarmac road where you turn left round to Silversands. Keep to the coast so that you pass the small car park and head along to the café area. After the café, leave the coastal path and turn left on an unsurfaced path beside the railway line. Follow this path inland for alongside the railway for 700. On reaching the road, cross over and use the path on the opposite side passing St Fillans Church and Aberdour Castle. The path leads into the car park at the station. Walk through the car park, exiting close to the station building. Turn left onto the main road back to the “sun gates”.

Return to Dalgety Bay

Use the pavement to walk out of the village (it will be necessary to cross to the north side of the road). At the very edge of the village after the last houses is a noticeable gap in the hedge on the right hand side into a field. From here a grassy field path leads to Downans Plantation woods. Enter the woodlands at a gap in the wall. From here either turn right and head for the next gap in the wall, or if you have time, explore the paths in the woodland.

Exit the woodland again at another gap in the wall onto a field edge path. When walking around field edges, stick to the edge and do not allow dogs to wander across growing crops. After 300m the end of the field is reached at a surfaced path. Go left on this path for just under 200m. After passing a rhododendron bush, the path opens out and there is an obvious broken piece of fence on the right. Cross the fence at this point out to the road. Cross over the road, and then climb the gate on the opposite side (do so at the hinged end as this minimises damage). From here there is another field edge path on the outside of the woods heading back towards Dalgety Bay. If you are tempted to use the stile to enter the woodland at this point, be warned that it is not a particularly easy route due to fallen trees. Better to stick to the field edge until a fence is reached. At this point there is a gap in the fence to the right into the woods. From here there is a feint and sometimes rough woodland path through the woods back to the vicinity of the Cornerstone Church.