North Berwick Law

Seen The North Berwick Law from the north, across the rooftops of North Berwick from

The North Berwick Law is located on the southern edge of the small Scottish port town of North Berwick in East Lothian area on the south bank of the Firth of Forth. It is a 187 meter high volcanic cone of basalt, residue of an active before 335 million years volcano which was formed later by the glaciers of the Ice Age and was given its present elongated shape. Law is the Scottish word for such volcanic cone, as found for example in Dundee.

At the foot of the Law is a parking lot, and the mountain is well served by footpaths. The summit was until recently marked by an arch of two whale jawbones that were there since 1933. In 2005, however, they were so decayed that they collapsed and the remains were transported by helicopter. According to an anonymous donation in 2007, a replica of the bone has been installed in the following year.

At the top you will also find the ruins of several buildings that were used during the Napoleonic wars as a lookout. From there you have a view over the Firth of Forth, Edinburgh and far into Fife.

Gallery

The whale bones on the top of Berwick Law in 2005

A replica of the original bone in 2012

An anonymous donation allowed the reconstruction of the landmark