Lying marooned near to the foreshore, visitors may glimpse the almost ghostly remains of eight traditional sailing vessels.  These are of the type commonly used at the peak of the fishing industry boom in the 1880s.  The Bay was used as a safe anchorage by the masters of the fishing fleets from nearby Cockenzie, Port Seton and Fisherrow.  The vessels are ‘Scafies’ and ‘Fifies’. Collectively, their skeletal remains form an important part of Scotland’s maritime archaeological record.  As such, the site where they lie is scheduled as an ancient monument.

However, they are not the only maritime vessels to have ended their days in the seclusion of Aberlady Bay.  Often, it appears, the endlessly shifting sands of the Bay reveal tantalising glimpses of other skeletal remains.  At low tide the hulks of the once proud Gleaner and Gratitude may be seen, but there are others too, resting at peace.

The remains of The Gratitude

Other ghostly remains emerge from the constantly shifting sands

Further out, midway along the sandbank fringing the Bay, the remains of two midget submarines lie tethered to an anti-tank block.   These are remnants of World War II and have recently been identified as ‘XT’ craft.   Out in the North Sea, they were used to training aircrews to spot enemy submarines. 

In 1946, shortly after the end of the war, the submarines were attacked by Spitfire and Mosquito aircraft from nearby Drem and East Fortune airfields to test the effectiveness of new armour piercing and semi-incendiary munitions.  Video footage of the tests also survive.

Courtesy of Alison Boutland