Villages of the Black Isle
Despite its name, the Black Isle is not an island but a peninsula, with the Cromarty Firth to the north, the Beauly Firth to the south and the Moray Firth to the east. Each of its villages has its own story.
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Avoch
A conservation village with a long fishing heritage, a Telford harbour, Ormond Castle and the woods of Rosehaugh.
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Cromarty
The Highlands’ best-preserved historic town, at the mouth of the Cromarty Firth: beaches, dolphins, fine old buildings and a quiet base for touring.
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Culbokie and Ferintosh
The parish of Urquhart: farmland and woods above the Cromarty Firth, with views to Ben Wyvis and a whisky history Burns wrote about.
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Fortrose
A 13th-century cathedral, a hidden harbour and Chanonry Point, one of the best places in Europe to watch dolphins from land.
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Muir of Ord
“The Muir”: a busy village between the Beauly and Conon rivers, home to Glen Ord Distillery and the Black Isle Show.
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Munlochy
A village at the head of a deep bay, famous for its birdlife and for the Clootie Well.
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North Kessock
Across the Kessock Bridge from Inverness: a shoreline village on an ancient ferry route, with Ord Hill above and Kilmuir beyond.
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Resolis
Balblair, Jemimaville and Kirkmichael on the Cromarty Firth, with the birds of Udale Bay.
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Rosemarkie
A sandy beach under red sand cliffs, Pictish stones at Groam House Museum and the wooded Fairy Glen.