Pressmennan Wood
Enjoy a visit to Pressmennan Wood and Pressmennan Lake on this circular walk near Dunbar in East Lothian. There's over 200 acres to explore with views of the Firth of Forth and Bass Rock. You can also enjoy a stroll along Pressmennan Lake, one of only three lakes in Scotland. It's a splendid place with Pressmennan considered by many to be one of the best woods in the UK.
There's a nice waymarked walking trail starting from the car park at the western end of the woods. Along the way there's lots of interesting flora to look out for including bluebells, conifers, wild garlic (ransoms) and wild raspberries. Wildlife is abundant with deer, hares, bats, otters and owls. It's great for children too with a sculpture trail where they can hunt for fairies known as Glingbobs and Tooflits.
To continue your walking in the area try the Dunbar Cliff Walk which gives fine views of the ruined Dunbar Castle and Bass Rock.
Postcode
EH42 1TF - Please note: Postcode may be approximate for some rural locationsPressmennan Wood Ordnance Survey Map 
- view and print off detailed OS map
Pressmennan Wood Open Street Map 
- view and print off detailed map
Pressmennan Wood OS Map 
- Mobile GPS OS Map with Location tracking
Pressmennan Wood Open Street Map 
- Mobile GPS Map with Location tracking
Explore the Area with Google Street View 
Dog Walking
The woods are a great place for a dog walk with lots of nice trails to try.
Further Information and Other Local Ideas
Head a few miles north west from the woods and you can try the Haddington to Longniddry Railway Walk. This easy 5 mile walk takes you along a dismantled railway line, running between these two East Lothian Towns.
Cycle Routes and Walking Routes Nearby
Photos
Pressmennan Wood. High up on the wooded slopes, an area of larch in springtime. Pressmennan is managed by the Woodland Trust. The mixed woodland is thought to contain some of the last remnants of the ancient woodland which clothed much of Scotland before it was cleared.
Pressmennan. A long artificial loch set in old oakwoods. There were plans to fell the trees in the 1980's and the place became quite famous. Now in the care of the Woodland Trust. Taken near the dam at the west end of the loch. It is one of only a few bodies of water in Scotland known as lakes; the others include the Lake of Menteith and the Lake of the Hirsel, only the Lake of Menteith is a natural body of water.
The woods are one of the few places in East Lothian where the common redstart nests. In 2006 the woods were also host to the first record of Iberian chiffchaff in Scotland.
View of Gallows Law from the wood. Looking east towards the steam plume from Dunbar cement works on an anticyclonic day. It was cloudy here, but sunny a few miles west at Edinburgh. The condensed water rises so far, until it meets a layer of warmer air and then the cloud spreads. The field in the foreground is about to be ploughed.
The Woodland Trust have been active here, conifers removed and replaced by broadleaves in tully tubes.
Sauchet Water. Everything is green again, sheep grazing beside the Sauchet Water, Pressmennan Wood in the background.