Thornton Burn

- June 21, 2015

Just below the ruins of Innerwick Castle, which 5 miles east of Dunbar, is the Thornton Glen Nature Reserve. Deep in the glen runs Thornton Burn, which is heavily over grown with trees and plants. It is like a forgotten world in the middle of the East Lothian countryside.

Entry to the reserve is over a small style at the edge of the village of Crowhill. There is a well worn path up to the ruins of Innerwick Castle and another one that run lower down but still above the burn. To get down to water level I had to scramble down a bank. I'm also very thankful I was wearing waterproof boots as I had to wade through the water on occasions.

However all this effort was worth it because I found myself is a very secluded spot next to some small waterfalls, with the castle walls just visible through the trees 20 metres above me. The sound of the wind rustling through the trees and the birds singing, coupled with the sun breaking through the canopy of leaves, I could've been in a different world.

I set the camera on the tripod and set about capturing some images of the scene before me. I moved along the burn a few times but had to turn back because the water was too deep and there was no passable way through the undergrowth covering the bank.

Thornton Burn is a beautiful part of East Lothian but not easy to reach on foot. The well trodden paths leading to the castle though are well worth a visit.