Editing Aberdour (section)

== Geography ==

The [[A921 road|A921]], the main road along the south coast of [[Fife]], leads down the High Street of Wester Aberdour, before kinking sharply left to cross the railway line, then right again to progress through Easter Aberdour's Main Street.

Wester Aberdour has a narrow through road more closely hemmed in by shops and hotels. A number of vernacular buildings of the 17th-early 19th centuries add to the historic scene. Close to the railway bridge, three lanes continue eastwards, presumably once the route of the original High Street before the arrival of the railway. One now leads to [[Aberdour railway station]], a beautifully kept and cared for example of a traditional station, in keeping with its role of transporting at least a quarter of the village's working population to their work each day.

A second lane leads alongside the railway line to Aberdour Castle, while a third leads to the restored Aberdour House. A little further west, a narrow road closely lined with high walls, Shore Road, leads down to the West Sands and the Harbour. For many this area is the highlight of any visit to Aberdour; parking at the foot of Shore Road is usually at a premium.

Another road leads coastwards from Easter Aberdour. Hawkcraig Road leads past St Fillan's Church and through Silversand Park, home to [[Aberdour Shinty Club]], en route to a parking area on Hawkcraig. The car park was the site of a whinstone quarry between 1910 and 1933,<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Lloyd |first=Arthur |title=Aberdour Present and Past |date=2019 |publisher=Aberdour Cultural Association |location=Aberdour}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Drumm |first=P |title=A Nice Little Place by the Sea The Story of Aberdour's Maritime Past |date=2009 |publisher=Syntax |location=Edinburgh}}</ref> exploiting the dolerite sill which forms the bedrock geology.<ref>{{Cite web |last=British Geological Survey |title=Geology Viewer |url=https://geologyviewer.bgs.ac.uk/?_ga=2.223816667.1960318699.1715605739-1260849317.1715605739 |access-date=13 May 2024}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Goodchild |first=J. G. |date=1900 |title=The Dolerite of Aberdour, with some Speculations on the Origin of Eruptive Rocks in general |url=https://www.lyellcollection.org/doi/abs/10.1144/transglas.11.2.271 |journal=Transactions of the Geological Society of Glasgow |volume=11 |issue=2 |pages=271–272|doi=10.1144/transglas.11.2.271 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Matley |first=C. A. |date=1910 |title=The Lower Carboniferous rocks near Aberdour (Fife) |url=https://www.lyellcollection.org/doi/abs/10.1144/transed.9.5.364 |journal=Transactions of the Edinburgh Geological Society |volume=9 |issue=5 |pages=364|doi=10.1144/transed.9.5.364 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Strimpel |first=Oliver |date=10 October 2022 |title=Anna Fleming on the Experience of Rock Climbing |url=https://www.geologybites.com/anna-fleming |access-date=13 May 2024 |website=Geology Bites}}</ref> The area was then used as the council refuse tip before becoming a car park in the 1970s,<ref name=":1" /> part of the overgrown and rocky bluff separating Aberdour's two bays. From here is it a short walk to the Silver Sands, Aberdour's busiest and most popular beach.

On the west side of Hawkcraig Point there is a short concrete jetty that was used as part of the development of radio controlled [[torpedoes]] during [[World War I]]. The foundations of the Radio Hut can still be seen in the lea of the hill.