Leg 12 - Eyemouth to Arbroath

I'd originally planned to go to Anstruther next, but the tides didn't work out so I headed on up to Arbroath instead.

The Kirk at Arbroath

It was quite a long passage crossing both the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Tay so I was quite a way out to sea for most of the time. The visibility was very good but it was overcast and chilly (still!) - I can't wait to get away from the east coast and these seemingly incessant northerly winds.

Although I was out of sight of the coast most of the time, the sea was teeming with seabirds. There were puffins and guillemots everywhere, but the real stars were the gannets. Huge squadrons of them were flying around, skimming just a few inches above the water in perfect formation. They passed right by the boat so I was looking down on them as they gracefully swept by. Utterly breathtaking.

I need to do a bit of shopping so will stay in Arbroath for a day or so, and take some time to look round the town. Today's mission will be to search out and destroy the legendary Arbroath Smokie...