Cellardyke Tidal Pool: Wild Swimming in the East Neuk of Fife

Fronds of seaweed clung to the sea wall of the pool, as if trying to climb to the other side.

Perched here, half submerged in salt water, I could see the nature of the Fife coast in all its glory. Immediately ahead of me were short sea stacks, lined up in a row, the tide not yet quite far in enough for the waves to spray through the gaps. To the right I could see the smooth curve of bedrock tilting upwards, and in the distance through the haze the Isle of May lingered on the horizon.

On my side of the wall nature was tamed, albeit slightly. A breeze caused ripples in the seawater, which fills the pool at high tide, and limpets hung on tightly to the concrete by the steps. The benefit of the tidal pool, though, was a sense of security, of being able to relax into the moment without worrying about tides or currents or waves. In my borrowed wetsuit, I was floating more than swimming most of the time, but I still felt that same thrill that comes from cold water swimming – that initial piercing shock, followed by the inevitable buzz.

It was the first day of September at Cellardyke Tidal Pool in the East Neuk, the south eastern corner of Fife, and it felt decidedly more like winter than the last gasp of a Scottish summer.

The sea temperature was 14 degrees Celsius at the most, and after a brief dazzle on the water, the sun’s rays retreated behind heavy grey clouds for the rest of the morning. It didn’t matter. You don’t visit Scotland for the weather, after all, and the grey skies and mist hovering over the Firth of Forth only added to the atmosphere.

This was my first swim of its kind: I had never swum in a tidal pool before, only swimming within my depth at beaches I was comfortable and familiar with near my childhood home in the Outer Hebrides. The coast of Fife, though, is littered with tidal pools like the one at Cellardyke, seemingly growing out of the rocks in towns and villages like St Monans, Pittenweem, and St Andrews.

I remember the tidal pool at Castle Sands in St Andrews fondly, the one that my friends and I only ever experienced at dawn on May 1st, dashing in and out of the icy water, part of an old tradition that claimed students would fail their exams if they didn’t. We never actually swam there – the thought wouldn’t have crossed our minds – but wild swimming has grown in popularity since my student days in the Noughties.

Cellardyke Tidal Pool (known locally as “the Bathie”) had only officially re-opened two days before my swim, after a £150,000 renovation spearheaded by the local community.

According to the Cellardyke Tidal Pool community group, the pool was first built in 1933, incorporating natural rock into its structure, but by the Sixties it fell out of favour with the arrival of heated indoor pools and easier foreign travel. Fast forward to today, and the resurgence of cold-water swimming encouraged the local community to band together to fix storm damage to the walls, and make access easier and safer.

It certainly felt like an unofficial community hub. When we arrived around nine there were already a handful of women striking out across the pool, some in wetsuits, others simply in swimming costumes and bobble hats. My brother and husband were watching from the edge, while my brother’s friend Helen, who goes for regular swims along the coast, was showing me the ropes. I slowly eased myself into the water from the steps, letting each part of my body briefly adjust to the cold before taking the next step under – and then finally striking out into the dark saltwater. There’s a reason people become evangelists for wild swimming; it feels freeing, almost elemental, as if for a few brief moments you’re part of nature itself.

After my swim (and a hilarious attempt at changing into warm clothes under a swim robe), I watched everyone else.

There was a dog splashing about at one end of the pool, and a paddle boarder gliding along the other. A little girl picked up rocks and shells under the watchful gaze of her parents. I smiled at the camaraderie of the group of local women, now out of the water and warmed up, sitting chatting together in fold away chairs. I eyed the waves as they moved closer, slipping between the sea stacks. I took in the doors in the stone wall at the edge of the rocks, and imagined the lucky homeowners who had personal access to the tidal pool. What it would be like to live somewhere like this, I wondered, in a village with narrow cobbled streets and bunting draped over doorframes, and the ability to swim each morning through a secret garden-style door that opened onto the coast?

By the time we were leaving, about an hour after I first stepped into the sea, more swimmers had arrived, and the pool was getting busier. The snack bar and coffee truck parked nearby weren’t open yet, but I could imagine how popular they’d be as the day wore on, sustenance for everyone who’d been for a dip, or a “dook” as they say in Scots. Instead, we set off in the car, heating on full blast, for breakfast in another charming East Neuk fishing village, bacon rolls and teas and coffees warming us up from the inside out.

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NEED TO KNOW

How do I get to Cellardyke Tidal Pool? Cellardyke is a small fishing village right next to the larger town of Anstruther, on the east coast of Fife. It’s about an hour and a half’s drive from the centre of Edinburgh if you take the main A92 road, although you can also take the longer coastal road. The X61 Stagecoach bus from Edinburgh also passes through Cellardyke on the way to St Andrews.

What can I expect? The Cellardyke Tidal Pool community group have a helpful website with a list of FAQs and other information. There are public toilets near the pool, as well as a children’s play park and a snack bar and mobile coffee van, and colourful hooks for hanging your clothes on while you swim. The cafes and shops of Cellardyke and Anstruther are an easy walk or drive away, too.

What else is nearby? If you’re visiting the tidal pool at Cellardyke, there are plenty of other popular wild swimming spots, including the tidal pools at Pittenweem and St Monans, and the beach at Elie, which is also home to a seaside sauna. There is a huge amount to see and do in Fife, including walking the Fife Coastal Path, watching (or playing) golf in St Andrews, enjoying some local spirits at Kingsbarns or Eden Mill distilleries, diving into Scotland’s royal history in Dunfermline – and much, much more!