What is coastal rowing?

Coastal rowing is a relatively new sport, which started up in 2010. It involves coastal communities building, rowing and racing boats in the sea (and on lochs and rivers). There are 5 people in a boat - a coxswain (cox) who steers the boat and 4 rowers, with one oar each - two rowers have an oar to their left and two have an oar to their right. The boat is built using a kit from a standard design - but it’s a lot harder to build than an IKEA wardrobe!

The boats are called St Ayles skiffs and are based on a Fair Isle skiff, a small and sturdy fishing vessel suitable for use in rough seas. The name refers to the St Ayles chapel, which stood on the site of The Scottish Fisheries Museum in Anstruther, which commissioned the first prototype skiff. For a bit of history of the St Ayles Skiff and Scottish Coastal Rowing In General check out www.scottishcoastalrowing.org.

When was Eskmuthe Rowing Club founded?

Eskmuthe was set up at Fisherrow Harbour in Musselburgh in 2013, which is where our boats are still kept. A group of locals built our first boat, Honesty - named after the Honest Toun of Musselburgh, and launched her in August 2013. The boat-builders named the club Eskmuthe (mouth of the Esk) to honour both the historically distinct communities of Fisherrow and Musselburgh.

Eskmuthe is a community-focused club, open to all, and a member of the Scottish Coastal Rowing Association.

Our second skiff is called Steedie Falconer, named after the last surviving Fisherrow fishwife (who died while we were building the boat).

How does the boat move through the water?

As with all rowing boats, the rowers sit backwards and face the Cox who sits at the back of the boat and looks forward. The cox is essentially the captain of the boat. As well as steering, they tell the rowers what to do, help them to turn or stop and judge how hard to row (and help them row in time!).

Rowing is quite straightforward to get the hang of but takes time to get really good at. The idea of rowing is to put your oar in the water and use the resistance of the blade in the water to push the boat forward. Simply put, pull the oar through the water and push it back through the air.

The key to making the skiff move well is timing. All the rowers should be in time, with their blades entering the water and leaving the water at the same time. The “stroke” rower (the one immediately facing the cox) sets the pace and the timing and the other three should follow their lead. Getting the timing right takes practice.

What does it cost to join?

It’s £35 for a year’s membership, which covers all the basic costs of the club - insurance, repairs, berthing fees, etc. After that, it costs £3 per row and you can buy an online loyalty card for £30, which gives you 10 rows plus 1 free. Cost is not a barrier - if you’re unwaged, it’s £20 to join and £2 per row, but if anyone can’t afford to pay, that’s fine.

Do I need previous experience?

No - almost all our club members had never done any form of rowing before joining. The cox will give you instructions on the basics, and there will be at least two experienced rowers in the boat for your early rows. If you’re not sure about anything, just ask and if you get it wrong don’t worry, even the most experienced get it wrong (more often than they care to admit!).

At some point you will ‘catch a crab’ - when your oar is pushed through the water by the motion of the boat and the oar knocks you backwards. It happens to everyone at some point, and to recover, push down on the oar handle and the oar will come out of the water and will stop pushing you backwards. The rest of the crew will then regale you with stories of when it happened to them and how much worse their experience was.

Is there an age limit?

It’s difficult for anyone to have the strength to row until they are around 12 years old as the oars are quite heavy - but there are no limits beyond that. We currently have around members aged between 16 and 74! It’s a great intergenerational sport and if you want to compete, there are categories for each decade, all the way up to crews with an average age of 70. The oldest rower in the last world championships was 85!

What should I wear?

Being in an open rowing boat leaves you exposed to all that the Scottish weather can throw at you. You are also likely to get a little wet as you can get splashed from the oars or from spray if it’s a bit choppy, but this all adds to the experience!

In the summer it can get warm when you are rowing, and you are also very exposed to the sun as it bounces off the sea. Loose clothing or specific sportswear works best and lots of sun cream!

In the winter (and sometimes in summer) you will need warm clothing; a thermal layer is good and an outer water and windproof layer is a good idea on the worst days. Lots of layers are better than a few thick ones, so you can remove them as we go. There is space to store extra clothing in the boat.

Your feet, and possibly the bottom of your trousers, will get wet so you need footwear that you don’t mind getting wet. Wellies are OK, to begin with, or old trainers and woollen socks. Various combinations of neoprene socks and pool shoes/sailing boots are used by club members.

If you want to bring a phone onto the boat, it’s best to use a waterproof case.

When does the boat go out?

We row all year round, but we are limited by the tides - and the light in winter. We can get out on average for 2 hours on either side of high tide, but this can be more or less depending on the height of the tide. Fisherrow Yacht Club has a very useful tide and sun calendar (see here) which shows how the tides change day by day and when there is enough water to row.

Typically, we might offer 3 sessions each Saturday and 3 each Sunday, then others in midweek (more in summer when the days are longer), depending on the availability of coxes. Sessions usually involve about an hour (or slightly longer) on the water - everyone gets there a bit earlier to get the boat ready and down the slipway into the water.

We run a mixture of sessions - social rows, technique development rows and training sessions. Social rows involve the boat going along the coast (usually towards Portobello) and plenty of stops to chat and admire the views. Sometimes, on a slightly longer session, we might land at Portobello for a coffee (or occasionally, a beer).

Technique development rows will involve fewer stops, and more instruction on how to row, and how to row well. However, there are still plenty of laughs. Training sessions are for people who want to take part in regattas, where we compete against other clubs - and involve practising racing starts, turns and strong rowing.

Where do regattas take place?

There is a regular sprint regatta in Port Seton harbour in the spring and a much longer race (2.8km) around Craigleith Island, North Berwick, in August. These are a bit different to normal, as most regattas are 2km races, with each boat turning around a single buoy. This includes Ullapool, where we have raced a few times, SkiffieFest in Northern Ireland and the club world championships (SkiffieWorlds), which we have competed in twice - in Stranraer in 2019 and Kortgene in the Netherlands in 2022. We’ll take part again in Stranraer in July 2025.

We have also taken part in regattas in Portsoy (Aberdeenshire), Anstruther, Strathpeffer (Highlands), Portobello, Dunbar, Queensferry, Alnmouth and Amble in Northumberland. We have held several regattas of our own, most recently to celebrate our 10th birthday in 2023, and then again in 2024. We hold regular race days with our neighbouring clubs in Portobello too.

What about longer, non-competitive rows?

We’ve done lots of these. In the summer of 2024, we rowed out to Inchkeith Island in the Forth, landed to have lunch and explore, and then rowed back for a stop in Portobello before heading back to Fisherrow when we had enough water to land.

We have also done long rows from Fisherrow to North Berwick and to the bridges at Queensferry, and a couple of times to Newhaven. We have towed the boat over to Kinghorn in Fife to join a row to Inchcolm Island, and we joined a celebration of the new Queensferry Crossing when it opened. Most recently, we’ve had longer trips to Dunure in Ayrshire, and to Lochore Country Park in Fife. Memorable trips from the past include a row around (most of) Holy Island, some glorious rowing in Findhorn in the North-east and a bouncy row to Coquet Island from Amble in Northumberland. We regularly take part in a long row up the River Tweed and have also done a long row up the River Tay.

We joined the RowAround event in 2022 which aimed to cover the entire coast of Scotland - and we rowed the entire distance (in stages) from the bridges at Queensferry to St Abbs. We would have made it to Berwick but the final leg was cancelled due to a poor weather forecast.

What makes a good rower?

It’s important to row in time with the rest of the crew and to get a long, strong stroke. Breathing evenly is really important, as is pushing your feet firmly against the footrest. The majority of power comes from your legs and core. It’s also important to sit upright and look ahead, and to hold the oar lightly - and not to dip the oar too deeply in the water.

The most important thing of all is to row together as a crew in a controlled and consistent way. If the oars are going in and out of the water at different times, the movement of the boat is jerky and it moves more slowly.

A moderate level of physical exertion is required but the cox will tailor this to the experience and fitness of the crew at the time. Please let the cox know if you are struggling to keep up, need a break or want to make adjustments.

What are the safety considerations?

Rowing is sometimes cancelled if the wind is high and the sea is too rough. If it’s marginal, the cox will make a decision depending on the experience of the crew, but the boat will not go out if one person is unhappy.

Life jackets must be worn at all times when in the boat on the water. The club will provide these, but you can buy your own. A member of the club will show you how to put these on and operate them. They should be adjusted to fit. If you are unsure of how to use the life jacket, please ask before you get in the boat.

Launching and landing the boat is the trickiest part of a row, especially if there is surf, so please pay particular attention to the cox’s instructions during this phase.

Skiffs are very sturdy boats and no one has had to inflate a life-jacket since the club started rowing.

How can I contact the club?

Email eskmuthe@gmail.com or find us on Facebook (Eskmuthe Rowing Club), X/Twitter @eskmuthe or Instagram (Eskmuthe_rowing_club)

We look forward to seeing you!