"every fisher laddie's dream..."

Pittenweem Jo was immortalised in the song by John Watt, and although the herring gutters have gone the harbour remains the main fishing harbour in the East Neuk.  The harbour is a classic Fife fishing harbour, extended several times in past centuries (although at least in part to cope with coal transport,) but unlike others it's clear that this is still a working harbour with the emphasis on fish.  Many towns in Fife and the Lothians rely on the "Pittenweem fish van" bringing fresh fish almost to the door, and the fish market (the large building behind the fishing boats) is still a busy place when the ships come in.

Despite its modern appearance the market building dates back over 200 years, but has been kept up to date with each new technological innovation.
The views along the coast are usually stunning.  The day we visited was quite misty, and the effects were magical.

Emerging from the mist behind the cliffs at the end of the "West Braes" are firstly the St Monans windmill, then the church at St Monans, and then more faintly the houses of Elie.  The windmill was built by the Sir John Anstruther to draw water from the sea into the salt pans - like many Fife land owning families their wealth was founded on coal and salt.  It was Sir John who paid for the extension to the harbour, on the condition that his ships had priority over other traffic.  Sir John also had a wagonway constructed to link the salt pans and the coal mines directly to the harbour.  Coal and salt production were closely linked - it took 8 tons of coal to produce a ton of salt. Production in the coal mines stopped in the early 19th century, partly due to a fire in the mine in 1794 which disrupted production, and partly due to changes in the tax regime which made salt production less economically viable.

The houses along the West Shore could almost be the epitome of the Fife fishing village - crow stepped gables, red pantiles, and outside stairs.
There's much more to Pittenweem than the harbour and the fishing, though, but that will have to wait for another day (and a different selection of photographs!)