This cache is available as a new “find” to those who
have already found the original cache, “The Herring Road
2” or its replacement, “The Herring Road 2
(relocated)”.
One of several Rights of Way crossing the Lammermuir Hills, the
Herring Road is the name given to the centuries-old route running
south from Dunbar to Lauder. This is the route by which the salted
herring were taken from Dunbar to Lauder and the Border country.
While there are many variations to the route, the designated
Scotways Right of Way runs from Halls, approximately 5 miles south
of Dunbar to Lauder on the A68, a distance of 24 miles, or to
Westruther on the A697. In earlier times the fishwives from the
east coast fishing ports would walk prodigious distances, as much
as 30 miles in a day, to get their fish to market, and this
carrying the creels of herring which might weigh up to a
hundredweight. Indeed, the Old Statistical Account of the 1790s
records that the fishwives of Dunbar walked the 27 miles to
Edinburgh with 200 pounds of fish in five hours! Perhaps miles have
become longer, pounds heavier and hours shorter in the last two
hundred years.
The Herring Road 2 (re-located again) - Dunbar Common is
one of a series of three caches that have been placed along the
northern half of the route. The other two caches are The Herring
Road 1 - Lothian Edge (GCZ4JD) and The Herring Road 3 -
Whiteadder (GCZ4JQ). Although the caches can be visited one at
a time, I hope some cachers may be tempted to take in all three and
complete the walk from Halls to the hill road between Gifford and
Longformacus (or vice versa), a nice day’s outing. Walking
the Herring Road will give a splendid introduction to the pleasures
of walking in the Lammermuir Hills, an area which is still
relatively unfrequented despite its proximity to Edinburgh. You
will need to make arrangements to be dropped off and picked up at
either end of the route as public transport is
non-existent.
The cache is placed alongside the Right of Way and is well
outside the area of the wind factory. The Right of Way has been
preserved; the route across the Crystal Rig development is marked
by red posts.
It is worth walking to the cache if only to see the extent of
the wind factory which numbers, I believe, 85 turbines. Immediately
adjacent to the Crystal Rig development is the Aikengall wind
factory of a further 20 turbines; and a further 30 turbines are
planned for Wester Dod, immediately to the east of
Aikengall.
The original site for this cache, archived but available to
review at GCZ4JH, now lies in the middle of a massive wind factory
development. Eighteen months ago, the cache site was surrounded by
an extensive forest. Since then, by my estimate, at least a
thousand acres of forest have been cleared to make way for the wind
factory. Not even the most stunted of saplings has been left - the
area is one of total devastation. It is as if the developers have
wished to remove all evidence that a forest once existed on these
moors. Have a look at the photographs in the gallery of the
archived cache GCZ4JH. Nothing is left of the forest shown on the
Landranger Map 67 stretching from Dunbar Common in the west to
Crystal Rig in the east, a distance of five kilometres. If this is
“green” energy, then count me out!!
The replacement cache GC1JDCM was located about a mile to the
south of the original, in a position which looked safe from the
developers - if anywhere in the Lammermuirs can be considered safe
from industrial developments of this kind. This cache disappeared
when the developers replaced the old fence line.
I hope that this new cache will last a bit longer in its new
location, another quarter mile further from the turbines.
My comments about the pleasures of walking in the Lammermuirs
should probably be revised to take account of the above.
Nevertheless, it is still possible to have a good day out. How long
that will be possible given the rapid spread of wind factories in
the area remains uncertain.
Car parking for access to The Herring Road is available at
several convenient points - listed form N to S along the
route.
• CP 1 - N 55 56.784 W 002 33.440 at Halls; there is also room
for one or two cars to be parked near the end of the public road
around N 55 56.566 W 002 33.293.
• CP 2 - N 55 52.960 W 002 34.795 where the Herring Road
crosses the Whiteadder Water, just off the hill road from Garvald
to the Whiteadder Reservoir.
• CP 3 - N 55 52.242 W 002 34.555 at the Penshiel road end on
the B6355.
• CP 4 - N 55 50.541 W 002 35.024 where the Herring Road
crosses the hill road from Gifford to Longformacus.
The most convenient parking area for this cache is at CP
2. The walk to the cache should take no more than twenty
minutes (one way), less for a reasonably fit party.