Eyemouth
Eyemouth
Introduction | Travelling| Peebles | Biggar | Tweed Valley | Melrose | Selkirk | Jedburgh | Hawick | Kelso | Coldstream | Duns | Eyemouth | St Abbs Head | Berwick upon Tweed
===Introduction to Eyemouth=== code: +44 (0)18907 Population:3,500
Five miles north of the border on the Berwickshire coast is the busy fishing port of Eyemouth. Fishing has been the life and soul of Eyemouth since the 13th century and the Eyemouth Museum, in the Auld Kirk on Market Place, has displays on the town's fishing heritage. The centrepiece is the Eyemouth Tapestry, made by local people in 1981 to mark the centenary of the Great Disaster of 1881, when 189 local fishermen were drowned during a violent storm. Info: Same opening hours as tourist office. £1.75, £1.25 concession. The two main events in Eyemouth's calendar naturally have a fishing theme. The week-long Herring Queen Festival takes place in late July.
Ins and outs
There are several buses daily to and from Edinburgh (1 hr 40 mins), and there are a couple of daily buses (Mon-Fri) to and from Kelso, via Duns. There's also a daily service to and from Berwick-upon-Tweed. If you're driving, the best route north is the scenic A1107 which joins the fast A1 near Cockburnspath.
In the same building as the museum is the Tourist Information Centre, Tel 50678. Open Apr-Jun and Sep Mon-Sat 1000-1700 and Sun 1230-1430; Jul and Aug Mon-Sat 0930-1730, Sun 1200-1700; Oct Mon-Sat 1000-1600. Hours subject to change.
There are a number of excellent coastal walks around Eyemouth, particularly the seven-mile Burnmouth to St Abbs walk described below. There are also shorter walks, which are described in the Walks in and around Eyemouth leaflet, available at the tourist office. The waters around Eyemouth are excellent for scuba diving. They form part of the St Abbs and Eyemouth Voluntary Marine Reserve, one of the best dive sites in Scotland, with a wide variety of marine life and the spectacular Cathedral Rock.
Sleeping and eating
Churches is a small hotel on Albert Rd in Eyemouth, Tel 50401, Churches Hotels. Otherwise there are several B&Bs in and around town, including Hillcrest, Coldingham Rd, Tel 50463, and Gunsgreen Lodge, Gunsgreen Park, Tel. 752085, bookings Tel 07713-101486. There's also a campsite at the Eyemouth Holiday Park, Tel 751050, overlooking the beach at the north end of town.
Eating options are fairly limited. There's a string of pubs and hotels along the harbour serving fresh fish and standard bar meals, the best being The Ship, Tel 50224. Otherwise try the Old Bakehouse, opposite the tourist office, which serves cheap snacks and meals all day.