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This TR should be called "The day after Liathach"
. Weather wasn't as great over mountain tops, but the eastern sky looked reasonable so we popped in to Cromarty, just for a short leg stretcher..
It's one of my favourite short walks and though it doesn't involve climbing any hills, it's still a lovely stroll, taking you to a great viewpoint on the top of the cliffs. We always park on the seaside car park and take the road and then the path east along the coast.
The entrance to Cromarty Firth:
The bay is usually very busy. I like coming to Cromarty to play "boatspotting". This time I spotted one, too:
Across the bay, in Nigg shipyard, some strange activity is taking place...
Close-up:
Galaxy?... Is our government planning a secret mission to Mars???
It was a breezy afternoon, but the village looked as quiet and peaceful as it always does:
On the path below the cliffs:
The path climbs the steep banks of the bay through some nice, deciduous woodland and on higher levels there are even a few benches for tired walkers to sit and enjoy the views. We stopped at one of these spots and enjoyed the panorama:
I was always fascinated by a group of caves situated low on the cliffs on North Sutor side. I guess the only way to reach them would be by boat. From "our" side of the cliffs we could only photograph them with maximum zoom:
A few white patches on the rocks suggest bird colonies:
... and another intriguing addition to the landscape are the ruins of World War II lookouts.
They were probably accessible only by ladders (like some tin mines on the cliffs in Cornwall) or from the water. I absolutely love lurking and exploring ruins and old buildings, wish I could get there to have a look inside these structures...
Exploring the cliffs can be just as interesting though:
2:0 to me for boatspotting:
The path continues up the cliffs and eventually it emerges from the woods to join a tarmac road. There is a car park here as well (for those who don't enjoy climbing
) and the road offers a nice return route to the village. But first, we took a short detour to the viewpoint.
Cromarty from above:
Looking towards the sea:
Invergordon and oil rigs moored in the port:
A lovely, short walk for anybody to enjoy
