November’s glow

Yellowcraig, 10 November

That title might leave you thinking that November has been filled with beautiful light so far, but in reality this month started with days of gloomy skies - referred to as ‘anticyclonic gloom’. Last week, it felt as if the gloom and the abbreviated daylight matched a mood that hung around us. On Saturday, we drove down the coast into a wall of greyness, only the weather broke when we reached John Muir Country Park - as is often the case in this corner of East Lothian where the conditions right on the coast and a mile inland can be different. We arrived on Belhaven beach to find dramatic cloudy skies, but with lightness. A brief reprieve, we thought.

On Sunday we woke to more gloom, until later in the day, when that mood shifted and blue skies pushed unexpectedly through the cloud. Grateful for the light, we headed to Yellowcraig, starting our walk in the woods before winding across the grassland to the dunes as the sky glowed in pastel hues.

Saturday’s walk was a reactive one as Raf was wired. There were other walkers, and there were surfers at Belhaven, and Raf wasn’t appreciating any of these people being around, even though everyone was distanced from us. The beach was so quiet, except for us. Some days I can cope with this, but on most I can’t. Noise is triggering and that’s just how my head space works. I’ve learnt to respect this. So Saturday’s walk did little to settle us, while this walk the following day was so grounding by comparison. What is it about this place and these views and this wide stretch of beach and this big sky?

We walked along the dunes and on along the edge of the golf course, as there were a few people on the beach so we waited until the coast was clear - literally - before heading back towards Fidra. We paused briefly at the shelter on the edge of the golf course as I couldn’t resist a few photos in this light, and then walked down onto the beach, Raf paddling across the stretch of rippled sand where the tide had receded as we headed to the water’s edge. I’ve shared a reel here in case you’d like to see more.

And then, as we walked on, the sky just glowed behind the dunes. A magical burst of light. This was a simple walk, but it was also the reset we needed, and sometimes that’s enough.

Yellowcraig, East Lothian, 10 November 2024.

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