An Aberdeenshire adventure: Dunnottar, Catterline, and Stonehaven
On one of the days of our Easter break in Angus we ventured over the border into Aberdeenshire, visiting Dunnottar Castle, the tiny fishing village of Catterline, and the pretty harbour town of Stonehaven.
Dunnottar Castle
Dunnottar was our first stop – it is possibly one of the two most iconic castles in Scotland, the kind that many people have seen images of and would recognise, even if they didn’t know where it was. (The other is Eilean Donan which we visited a few years ago.) Because it is perched on a rocky headland 160 feet high, there’s a steep climb down almost to sea level, then back up again to the gatehouse. On the way, we could glimpse in the distance the war memorial at Stonehaven which we would visit later in the day.
The surviving buildings are largely of the 15th and 16th centuries, but the site is believed to have been fortified in the Early Middle Ages. Soon we were in amongst them (still with views to the war memorial, just visible on the horizon in the first picture below).
Some of the highlights include the Marischal Suite with its interesting carvings. Enlarging the first image will tell you more about them.
The drawing room, restored in the 1920s, is the most intact room – absolutely magnificent. Again, enlarge for details.
Most poignant is the Whigs’ Vault where 167 Covenanters (Presbyterian rebels against acknowledging the King as head of the church) were imprisoned for 6 weeks in 1685 – a tragic tale. As the older plaque below says, the names of them all are recorded in the Castle Museum. I was interested to find two named “Annabell”, Annabell Gordone and Annabell Jacksone, a spelling I have only come across once before on Edgar’s Page. It was also interesting to see those surnames spelled with a final e.
After exiting the castle we had a final walk around outside before heading to our next destination: Catterline.
Catterline
There were two reasons for visiting Catterline. One, we were told the Creel Inn would be a very good lunch stop – it was. Two, you might spot a plaque above the red bench in the above image – it commemorates the painter, Joan Eardley (1921-1963), long one of my favourites. Joan had two main, contrasting, subjects – depictions of children in 1950s Glasgow and the landscapes and seascapes around the village of Catterline where she spent much of her time.
Another memorial has recently been erected because 2021 was the centenary of Joan’s birth.
We have also visited several Eardley exhibitions over the last couple of years, including one in May at Glasgow University’s Hunterian Art Gallery. I found we had inadvertently replicated some of the paintings. Here’s the clearest example: Winter Sea III, shown with our photograph taken from the top of the village looking down to the harbour.
The rows of white cottages are probably much the same as when Joan lived there.
Unlike the sandy beaches we had visited earlier in the week, here there are rocky conglomerates.
And, oh, the sea, the sea! I can see why Joan was so fascinated.
It wasn’t just the look of it I loved, but the sound – the noise of the waves pulling back over the pebbles.
I could have listened to it for hours, but instead we made our way to our final destination of the day Stonehaven.
Stonehaven
After parking in Stonehaven’s Market Square we strolled along to the harbour along the beachside boardwalk with its quirky selection of sculptures, including one of a WW2 Norwegian seaplane.
We liked the way that Phil has joined in with his own contributions!
At the harbour is the Tolbooth Museum, the oldest building in Stonehaven.
The harbour itself is lovely.
After looking round it, we climbed the path above the harbour heading for the war memorial we had seen from Dunnottar that morning.
We got another good view of the castle – had we not wanted to go to Catterline for lunch, the sensible thing would have been to leave the car at Dunnottar and walk the coastal path to Stonehaven.
As it was, we descended back into town via more garden art and some quaint looking shops.
This was a fabulous day out, and I would go back to any of these places in a heartbeat. It also marks the last of my posts about our Easter break and leaves me with only four months to catch up on. I sigh, and remind myself that I am doing this for fun! What will come next, I wonder?
The Glasgow Gallivanter 
I am just catching up myself Anabel. Had a trip back to the UK at the end of August to see the family then came back with Covid 😦 Did knock me around a bit but then I was also jetlagged! This looks a wonderful day out and you have taken some superb photos. I love the sound of the sea and could also listen to it for hours. Feel very sad for the fate of the unfortunate souls in the Whig’s Vault though.
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Hi, I see from my notifications you have been catching up! I also see you have a post in my tbr queue, but I am way behind too. Sorry to hear about the covid, as you’ve seen in later posts we both had it around the same time but all is now well as I hope it is with you.
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Yes all well now thanks Anabel. Hope you are both over Covid too. Apparently we are being hit by another wave here in WA (and the rest of Australia for that matter) but since I had whatever the latest variant was doing the rounds in London in September, hopefully I should have some good antibodies! I also need to do another catch up as I’ve got distracted from blogging yet again over the past few weeks! At one point I thought I’d be on a plane again back to the UK as my dad has been quite ill but he seems to be on the mend now fingers crossed. I have quite a few more posts to start writing up this week!
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Nice to hear from you again. We had no after effects of Covid, so all good here, glad your dad is doing better.
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That’s good to hear Anabel. One friend here has still not fully got her sense of smell back after a few months. I was happy to bounce back without ill effects as not everyone is so fortunate.
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I have seen so many lovely photos of that castle and can’t wait to get there. The sculptures are also my sort of place. A wonderful day indeed!
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It was: I think you will love this part of the coast.
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How, in the first picture of that famous castle, does one get up to the castle? I see people near the bottom…is there an elevator or stairs hidden from view? I would have loved to gave been around where you went to. I love the art you saw and the villages.
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You have steep stairs to climb! It’s a very good defensive position for a castle.
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You sure packed a lot into your day! Dunnottar looks very interesting and definitely somewhere I’d like to visit.
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We did! And I highly recommend Dunnottar.
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Lovely virtual visit. I like following you on these Scottish outings. I can understand the feeling of having 4 months worth of adventures to get through…good luck and courage! (Suzanne)
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Thanks Suzanne! Life is quite busy at the moment, so blogging is slipping down the priorities. But I do like to have a r3cord of where we have been.
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Hi Anabel – so much history and what an amazing area to visit – I too would love to see that area. The video of the sea – reflects its power … I’ve always loved it and can’t be far away from the sea. Joan Eardley’s self-portrait is beautiful … I can see the draw of her art. Sad she died so young. Fabulous visits you’ve had – thanks for recording them for us … and for you! Cheers Hilary
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Thanks Hilary! I love the power of the sea.
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Quite interesting sculptures!
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They certainly are!
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I do recognize that castle! And whatever comes next, we’ll enjoy it. Your blog makes me want to visit Scotland!
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I wish you would! Maybe someday.
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What a glorious day! Castle ruins… yes! I loved that you found the location that inspired Eardley’s painting. And those sculptures were so whimsical and fun. Yes, that and a good lunch makes for a perfect day.
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Thanks Janis – all three places were highlights of our trip.
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That would have to be close to the perfect day out. Just fascinating AND beautiful. Thanks for sharing, Mel
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I know! We loved it all.
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The castle setting is so stunning! And all so green. Those old rows of tidy, white cottages do make me wonder what they look like on the inside. Compact little boxes.
All the sculptures are delightful, too.
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I have seen pictures of the inside of the cottage Joan occupied – quite grim! I’m sure these days they will be very cosy.
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It’s such a picturesque country you’ve got there. (If only you had more sunshine.)
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But then we wouldn’t have so much green!
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That’s a tick list of some of the best highlights of the Scottish East Coast.
Like the quirky Stonehaven sculptures as well and that vault. Love tunnels of any kind.
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The sculptures are a lovely addition to the beach walk.
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What a lovely way to spend a day out, with so much variety. I hope we get to return to Scotland so we can explore like you do.
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It was a delightful day. I hope you get back here too, and as you know I would like to return to Australia. I hope our paths wouldn’t cross mid-air!
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That would be very sad.
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It would!
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Your post today has conjured up many childhood memories for me. My Dad is Aberdonian so we spent many years driving up and down to visit my grandparents there and we usually stopped off at Dunnottar Castle and had fish and chips while sitting at the harbour at Stonehaven. I also chose Joan Eardley as the subject of an essay when studying Art at High School and the painting for my final art exam was inspired by her portraits of children. So thank you very much not only for another interesting post filled with lovely photos but also a pleasing dose of nostalgia.
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Wow! I seem to have ticked so many boxes, I’m happy about that. You might like these two tweets I have saved which show two of the Samson children with Joan’s paintings of them.
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Thank you for sharing those tweets. And, yes, you did tick so many boxes.
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Dunnottar Castle is quite spectacular. I don’t think I have ever seen it before. And Stonehaven looks like a rather nice place.
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It is very spectacular – I had seen pictures of it many times, but never visited.
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I always stuck to chronological order, Anabel, but I’m very tempted to meander with my latest UK collection, and I’m totally lost with the Algarve stuff. Catterline and Stonehaven look wonderful 🤗💗
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I’m just wondering whether to write the newer stuff up while it’s fresh. On the other hand, when I’m writing about something that is months ago I remember less so it doesn’t take up so much time!
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Cunning 🤣💕
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I love the sound of the sea ebbing and flowing over a shingle beach – I could listen to it all day 🙂
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Me too! It’s mesmerising, isn’t it?
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What a great day out! The castle is beautiful but for me the coastal scenery would be the biggest draw. Like you I love the sound of the sea on pebbles 🌊 Your photos capture it so well – I love the details of the pebbles etc. and the small white hut with the red door!
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We certainly packed a lot into this day! And I agree, you can’t beat the sea.
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Hi, Anabel – I love the wonderful details in your photos here. I also love that you choose locations based on lunch reputations. Wise choice!
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Thanks Donna! As Napoleon (possibly) said, the army marches on its stomach. And so do Gallivanters.
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Lovely photos. I had a feeling I’d been to a castle near Stonehaven, but I’d have remembered that drawing room. Must have been another one, visited on a Deeside holiday.
Glad to see an artist had her centenary recognised.
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One thing the North East is not short of is castles! It’s good that Joan’s centenary year was so well marked. She died very young and hadn’t yet got as much recognition as she deserved.
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