Cramond Island

There are worse things you could do on a clear day than take a walk across to Cramond Island. Blue skies, wispy clouds, calm seas all add up to a delightful few hours spent on an island shrouded in history and much, much more. Not an island in the true sense of the word it is connected to the mainland at low tide not just by a vast sandy beach but a causeway stretching for almost a mile into the Firth of Forth before it reaches land. Safe to cross two hours either side of low tide, people do get stranded so keep your eye on the time. Cramond Island is larger than it at first appears, so explore, enjoy, but be aware of the tides. The waters seem to close over the causeway at speed when the tide turns and more than a few people can be seen paddling frantically to safety before it disappears completely. And I should know. Been there, done that, got wet but survived in one rather damp piece!
So what of Cramond Island, one of the many fascinating islands to be found in the Firth of Forth. Climbing to the centre of the island you are 68 feet above sea level and the views are extensive. Granton, Leith, North Queensferry, the coast of Fife, the Forth Rail Bridge and the small islands of the Forth can all be picked out. And whether you walk straight through the middle or around the outside, you are surrounded by history.
Owned by the Dalmeny Estate, Cramond Island is uninhabited. However, the earliest evidence of humans found anywhere in Scotland turned up here in a rather intriguing form. Discarded hazelnut shells, carbon dated to 8,500BC, are believed to be the remains of a meal eagerly devoured by a band of mesolithic hunter-gatherers. Another train of thought suggests the island may have been used by the Romans during their time in Cramond, where they constructed a fort and a harbour. Although no evidence has been uncovered on the island to suggest their presence, it is difficult to believe they would have bypassed it completely. The 1800s saw sheep grazed on the island, and until the 1930s there was an inhabited farmhouse towards the northern end of Cramond. Remains of this stone-build residence can be found among the trees, half-hidden beneath a heavy growth of ivy. In fact sheep were present on the island until the 1960s. Part of a stone jetty still clings to the west coast of the island, dating back to the 1800s ...... or maybe even further into the realms of history. And look out for the ruins of the Duck House, a tiny building once used as a holiday let for four people ....... difficult to believe, but yes, four people!
The military history of Cramond Island is very much in evidence wherever you look. The imposingly sinister concrete "dragon's teeth" that run almost the full length of the causeway are military in origin. Constructed to ensure small surface craft or U-boats could not pass south of the island at high tide, they are your first encounter with wartime Cramond. Reaching the island you will come across an emplacement for a 75mm gun and housing for a searchlight intended to illuminate targets for the gun. Make your way to the north eastern corner of the island. Here Cramond groans under the weight of wartime concrete. Gun emplacements, buildings for anti-shipping searchlights, stores, engine rooms and the terminus for the anti-submarine net all are still more than a little conspicuous. Less remains of the barracks which housed the troops. 
Secluded sandy beaches, sea birds, brightly-coloured gorse, foxgloves, pink and blue flowers peppering the rocks, all this creates a more natural side to Cramond, a peaceful presence surrounding the trappings of war. A beautiful spot lounging in the Firth of Forth, another jewel in the Scottish crown. But ..... and this is a very sad, and completely unacceptable but. Not all visitors appear to afford Cramond Island the respect it deserves. The north eastern corner is peppered with broken glass. Please explain to me why it is necessary to sit there and drink ...... and then proceed to smash as many glasses as possible on the concrete, creating a hazard to both wildlife, dogs, children and adults alike. Mindless vandalism, complete disregard for their surroundings, people incapable of taking their litter home. Abandoned barbecues, grafitti - some anti-English in origin - does little to welcome folk to the island. And why is so little done to clear it up? Fortunately  this does not deter me from visiting Cramond Island, and people still make the crossing in their hundreds. Don't let a handful of thoughtless idiots deter you from going. It really is worth taking time to cross the causeway and wander round the island. But come on, powers that be ..... let's at least clear up the glass!!!