Making Waves
Crank up the adventure and try coasteering on the picturesque coast of Aberdeenshire
THERE are loads of ways to enjoy the dramatic coastline of north-east Scotland, but there can’t be many that are as exhilarating as coasteering. Because why just look, when you can swim, jump and scramble all at the same time?
Adventure Aberdeen offers coasteering sessions for groups of four and more around the cliffs at Cove, south of Aberdeen.
Participants are supplied with wetsuits, helmets and buoyancy aids, and are accompanied by an instructor who will guide them around the rocks, gullies and pools.
All you need to bring is a bit of confidence in the water and a sense of adventure.
“Challenge by choice” is the motto, according to senior instructor Sally Duthie.
“If you want to climb to the highest points on the rocks and jump in, great,” she says. “But if you’re not comfortable with that and you’d rather jump from a small rock, that’s completely fine, too.
“There are plenty of other things you can do and no one is going to push you too far.”
Be warned, though – the ever-changing tides and weather conditions mean every coasteering trip is different and you might just find yourself hooked. “I’ve never had anyone say they didn’t enjoy it,” says Sally.
“Lots of people think, ‘Oh, I’m not sure this is for me,’ beforehand, but at the end of the day everyone always says it was brilliant. “And we hear kids all the time saying, ‘This is the best day ever!’” Coasteering is suitable for over-12s and the season runs from April to October.
It’s one of a range of outdoor activities on offer with Adventure Aberdeen – so if coasteering isn’t for you, you might want to try rock climbing, canoeing or sand boarding on the dunes at Balmedie.