A Broch Childhood

A Memory of Fraserburgh.

This picture is I would think, the most significant view of Fraserburgh. There are stories surrounding the Wine cave and the Wine tower that all brochers will Know. The entrance to the wine cave is in the corner of this wee bay below the wine tower. The story is that a piper went into the cave playing his pipes. The Idea was that he would discover the extent of the cave. His pipes were heard above ground at a sawmill about two miles from the entrance and he was never seen again. legend or truth?
I don't know.
The cave mouth is now filled in with stones. above the cave is the wine tower, the reason it was built is not clear. the story concerning the tower, is that a young lady was locked in there to prevent her marrying a common man she had fallen in love with. She is said to have jumped from the tower killing herself on the rocks below. The rocks where she landed are painted red to represent her blood. Above that is the castle which had the lighthouse built on to it, which as we know was the first lighthouse built on the Scottish mainland. My favourite memory of this bay was catching a very large cod on a handline from the rocks behind the harbour.
The wine tower and cave are reputed to have got their names from being used by smugglers.My memories are from sixty years ago and may not be 100 per cent accurate as I was about eight years old then, but it really is an interesting place as well as a really photogenic scene.