PHYSICAL FEATURES. 



71 



After leaving Fraserburgh by the west road, we turned to the 

 right towards the north coast, and passed through the fishing 

 villages of Sandside and liosehearty, each with their extensive 

 pier and dock accommodation, and an air of cleanliness and tidi- 

 ness not usually associated with east-coast fishing villages. Ex- 

 posed, however, to the whole forces of the waves of the North Sea, 

 these breakwaters and entrances are still far from being safe or 

 commodious, and a fringing reef of outlying rocks, whilst in some 

 measure guarding tlie concrete, yet constitute a serious additional 

 danger to approaching or storm-driven vessels. 



After passing the peninsula town of Rosehearty, we struck 

 away from the sea-coast and passed the inland town of Aberdour. 

 The road, which by this time had reached a considerable eleva- 

 tion, had hitherto ascended gradually, and continues to do so 

 until a little past Aberdour. Then the road assumes quite 

 a precipitous aspect, in places being so steep as to neces- 

 sitate passengers to alight and w^alk down, and one wheel 

 to be ' sledded.' Leaving the trap near Auchmeddan Farm, 

 Harvie-Brown and his companions struck down by a path- 

 way to the right into Auchmeddan Den or Dene, a deep gorge 

 almost like a Devonshire or Cornish * Coombe,' and visited the 

 curious village of Pennan — a very Cornish-sounding name, and 

 a strangely nestling clump of clean and tidy sweet-smelling 

 streets and houses. A rich red cliff, a great seam of New 

 Red Sandstone of which it is part, shows also in a hollow to the 

 east of Auchmeddan Dene, and rears a rugged scaur- torn face and 

 summit as a fine background of colour to the village. Pennan 

 Head rises some 400 feet in height, and rivals its confronting 

 neighbour of Troup Head on the other side of the bay, about 

 three miles farther to the west. This is a favourite haunt of 

 artists and tourists in summer, or of local excursionists from both 

 east and west. The tidiness of the whole little cove, dene, and 

 village, says volumes for the energy and thrift of the hardy 

 population.^ 



We drove on towards Troup Head — the principal object of our 

 long drive — and continued by a twisting, tortuous, and often de- 



^ The names of the people are mostly West, Gatty and Watt. 



