Rowing the East Neuk: free, freezing and frightfully exciting
I am knee-deep in freezing brine off Elie beach, gripping the side of the 22ft rowing skiff. What on earth have I let myself in for? I'm coastal rowing off the East Neuk of Fife and it's something even total beginners can have a go at. They even let you do it free of charge.
This brilliant experience comes courtesy of Elie and Earlsferry Sailing Club, which offers free taster sessions to anyone looking for an adventure. Just along the coast, St Ayles Rowing Club in Anstruther does the very same thing. My advice? Get yourself down to the East Neuk. Forget mindfulness classes — nothing feels as liberating as this.
Under the cox's watchful eye, I brace my feet hard against the footboard, pulling my oar in unison with my three other rowers. Time flies. It's meditative, it's exhausting — it's incredibly exhilarating, gliding through the waves and out to sea like a kittiwake on the wing.
We row past the safety of Elie harbour quay towards the ominous East Vows rocks and beacon, built in 1847 as a refuge for shipwrecked mariners. We keep a safe distance from the gothic-looking metal cage with its cross perched on top. I catch my breath and feel waves of joy and elation. After a pause, we turn the skiff around and head shorewards. Feet safely back on the sand, it's hard to believe we've been out for an hour.
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We stow Sea Queen next to Archie, a skiff named in memory of a former club member, then head along the coast to our seaside pied-à-terre in Anstruther. Named Sea Breeze — it feels wholly appropriate given my morning's work — the two-bedroom ground-floor apartment is filled with mid-century furniture and nautical flourishes; puffin prints, seagull cushions, illuminated lighthouses, and anchors. Yards from East Sand hore, with gulls screeching from the rooftops on East Green, it feels good to be beside the sea.
With the North Sea now in my veins, I walk down Whale Close to the Scottish Fisheries Museum (£11, children free; scotfishmuseum.org). With everything from gansey jumpers to full-sized boats, fishing gear and hauntingly atmospheric photos, it is a treasure trove of quirky finds that celebrate the East Neuk's connection to the sea. The museum played a huge part in the revival of coastal rowing, holding a boat-building workshop in 2009 that eventually led to people sailing St Ayles skiffs across the world.
Linda Fitzpatrick, the head curator, explains that fishing boats are like family members. 'The active transfer of skills is an intrinsic part of the museum. We can preserve the objects, but if we don't also preserve the knowledge of how to use and maintain them, then we're only telling half the story.' The museum has two seaworthy boats in the harbour, maintained by volunteers.
Later that afternoon, I wander past pastel-coloured crow-stepped gabled houses and Anstruther's seaweed-strewn beach to meet Babs Elliot, the chair of St Ayles Rowing Club. Some of the regular rowers are in a workshop, preparing to repaint St Ayles, which lies upturned. Elliot explains that she fell in love with coastal rowing the instant she caught sight of the skiff and has been hooked ever since.
The club looks after three skiffs, Chris O'Kanaird, St Ayles and Coull D, all with strong connections to the local community. 'They are all close to our hearts. The community builds them, and they become part of it, and that's why we look after them,' Elliot says.
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The club has about 60 members, with a regular rowing core of hardy individuals who go out in all weather. Elliot says: 'We row all year round if the conditions are right. The other night we had dolphins swimming around us, which was quite magical.'
Elsie Johnstone, a member, jokes: 'I didn't think I was competitive until I got in a boat. It's just good fun and it's good exercise. You see your town from a different perspective out on the water and the coastline, it's just amazing.'
I leave the rowers to their boat maintenance and take a leisurely stroll along part of the Fife Coastal Path. For now, fish and chips beckons; however, the Skiff World Championships are coming up in Stranraer in July … you never know.
Details Cat Thomson was a guest of Elie and Earlsferry Sailing Club (eesc.org.uk) and Welcome to Fife, which has two nights' self-catering for four in Sea Breeze apartment from £280 (welcometofife.com)
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