Brinewater Grotto is a little sea cave on the northern coastline, a short walk west of Solitude Lighthouse. Walk in from the beach and you will find a pond, three grumpy horkers and not much else. That modest front room is a bit of a disguise, though: a hidden stone door seals off a much bigger cave system that connects to the East Empire Company Warehouse, and that is where the real action is.
What you’ll find
- Beach side: a small pond with three horkers that only get aggressive if you crowd them, plus an unlocked chest tucked in a niche to the right of the entrance outside.
- Warehouse side: a larger hideout that is occupied by leveled bandits while the related quest is running, along with frostbite spiders and a hostile dog.
- Plenty of traps – bear traps on the floor and tripwires that drop swinging maces on the unwary.
- Several chests of different lock levels around the spot where Gulum-Ei is found, including the boss chest, plus a chest sitting underwater near the swimming bandit.
- A wrecked boat across the water with a barrel of ingredients, and more chests on the boats near the last guards.
- Food for a seaside feast: horker meat and tusks, two bowls of Horker Stew, seared Slaughterfish and slaughterfish eggs dotted around the water.
Quests
Scoundrel’s Folly – the Thieves Guild quest that leads you here in pursuit of Gulum-Ei. Note that the quest can only be pushed forward from the warehouse entrance, not from the beach.
Notable items
- Potions, wine and Alto wine hidden on the scaffolding along the right wall near the first two enemies, with a Silver Ingot and five iron ingots close by.
- A Dibella statue, an Imperial helmet, plus a Markarth Guard’s Shield and a Solitude Guard’s Shield on shelves near Gulum-Ei.
- A box behind the boss chest holding a Dwarven Sword, a Steel War Axe and an Ancient Nord Sword.
- Books: 2920, vol 12 – Evening Star, Hanging Gardens and Children of the Sky.
Tips
Don’t bother trying to force your way through from the lighthouse side early – the stone door only opens via the warehouse route during the quest. Once that is done, though, the bandits stay dead and the hidden door stays open, while the chests refill over time. That makes the beach entrance a handy back door for a periodic looting run.
Watch your feet in the smugglers’ section. Between the bear traps and the tripwires, the floor is more dangerous than the bandits.
Good to know
Look for an odd white lily-like flower on a shelf near Gulum-Ei. One of the two big Dibella statues in the preceding area is missing its flower, so it is very likely the same one.
Nearby
Closest places covered on TamrielSaga: Solitude Lighthouse, Dainty Sload, Broken Oar Grotto, Shadowgreen Cavern, The Katariah.
Location data (hold, map position, editor ID) read from the Skyrim game files; details checked against community wiki articles and summarised in our own words.