The Aberlady Bay Nature Reserve (National Grid Reference NT 455814) is situated on the south
shore of the Firth of Forth, in the west of the County of East Lothian. It is approximately fourteen
miles east-north- east of Edinburgh, and six miles north- north-west of Haddington.
To the north-west the Reserve is bounded by the Firth of Forth. The southern boundary is a track,
near the high water mark of ordinary spring tides, to the north of the Kilspindie Golf Links and
Aberlady. To the east, the Reserve is bounded by the Luffness and Gullane Golf Links. The
Reserve comprises two sections. The largest, about three quarters of the area, is the Gullane
Sands or Aberlady Bay, an area of sand and mud, exposed at low tide, forming the estuary of the
Peffer Burn. To the east of this bay is an area of dunes, grassland, freshwater marsh and saltings,
which is from one eighth to one third of a mile broad, and just under two miles long. To the south of
the bay the foreshore contains many interesting geological exposures.
The Reserve was declared by the East Lothian County Council on 14 July, 1952.
The minutes record'... the Council resolved to make the following declaration to be known as the
Aberlady Bay Nature Reserve Declaration:
that the land extending to 1439 acres or thereby at Aberlady Bay in the parishes of
Aberlady and Dirleton and County of East Lothian, as described in the appendix to the
Principal Minutes, is the subject of agreements entered into in terms of Sections 16 and 21
of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act, 1949, and is managed as a
Nature Reserve in terms of Sections 19 and 21 of the said National Parks and Access to
the Countryside Act, 1949.'
The agreements were made with the owners of the land and their tenants. The northern
section of the land east of Aberlady Bay is owned by Gullane Golf Club (Secretary: R. L.
Balfour- Melville, Esq., Gullane Golf Club, Gullane); and the southern section of this land by
Colonel A. J. G. Hope, Luffness Estate Office, Aberlady (Factors: Messrs. Blair, Cadell &
Macmillan, W. S., Edinburgh), and the tenants are the Luffness (New) Golf Club. The strip
of land to the south of Aberlady Bay is owned by Wemyss Landed Estates Co., Longniddry,
and the Kilspindie Golf Club are tenants.
Bye-Laws were confirmed by the Secretary of State on 7 October, 1952. Following a legal dispute
arising from the wildfowling interests, two further Bye-Laws were confirmed by the Secretary of
State on 12 February, 1954, following a public enquiry at Haddington.
There is no restriction on public access to the Reserve. There is a footbridge over the Peffer Burn
(Plate 9) from the A198 about half a mile east of Aberlady (NT 472806). A car park adjacent to this
bridge has a maximum capacity of twenty-three cars, and cars are frequently parked on the verge
of the A198 when this car park is full. Access to the landward section of the Reserve can also be
obtained from the Gullane dunes near the Hummel Rocks (NT 465831); from the Gala Law quarry,
with very limited car parking facilities, on the A198 approximately one and a half miles east of
Aberlady (NT 476815); and from the Gullane and Luffness Links. Access to the southern side of
Aberlady Bay is by a footpath running from Aberlady Green (NT 465802) to Gosford Bay (NT
449789).
A limited number of permits to shoot duck on a section of the Reserve are issued during the
shooting season in accordance with Bye-Law 14. The permits were first discussed at the meeting
of the Local Management Committee on 10 January, 1953. It was then decided to recommend that
permits to wildfowlers resident in East Lothian should carry the following conditions: (1) only
mallard and wigeon to be shot; (2) shooting to be forbidden south of the Peffer Burn and east of a
line fifty yards west of the concrete blocks south of the Marl Loch; and (3) shooting to be confined
to the hours between sunset and sunrise. At times since 1953, 1959-60 and 1962-63, the shooting
of geese has been allowed, but this is now forbidden. In recent years, 26 permits have been issued
to residents in East Lothian for the duration of the shooting season. The present conditions under
which a permit is issued are: (1) the permit is not transferable; (2) the permit must be produced on
demand; (3) shooting is only allowed between sunset and sunrise; (4) shooting is not allowed
between the southern boundary of the Reserve and the Peffer Burn and within that part of the
Reserve lying east of a line fifty yards to the west of the remaining pillars south of the Marl Loch;
(5) shooting by any weapon other than by ordinary smooth bore shot-gun is not allowed; (6) the
permit is valid from 1 September to 20 February of the following year; (7) the Management
Committee reserves the right to withdraw the permit at any time; and (8) the holder of the permit
will inform the Management Committee not later than 15 March of the number of days on which the
permit has been used and the number of species of duck shot.
Ordnance Survey Maps
1 inch (Scotland), 7th Series; Sheet 62. 1 inch (Scotland), Popular Edition; Sheets 68 and 74. 2|
inch; Sheets NT 47, NT 48. 6 inch; Sheets NT 47 NE & NW, NT 48 SE.
25 inch; Sheets NT 4479, NT4480, NT 4580, NT4680, NT 4681, NT 4682, NT 4683, NT 4780.
Geological Survey Maps
1/4 inch, Geological Survey of Scotland; Sheet 15
Air Photographs
Vertical:
540/801 4303-04 (4.7.52)
OS/62/33 072-77,082-85, 137-39 (1.5.62)
OS/63/233 022-23 (21.9.63)
Oblique: Dr. St. Joseph
RF 57-65
RF 68-74
Maps Accompanying Plan
1. Map of Reserve showing boundaries.
2. Map of Reserve showing proposed revised boundary. Fig. 10.2
3. Map showing main vegetation types.
4. Map showing paths and possible pony riding routes.
Ground Photographs
A collection of black and white photographs is held by the County Council.
