Moray Firth

[scampa]

For anyone interested in whale-watching etc, I got a really useful leaflet from a Tourist Information Centre yesterday, called "Whale, dolphin and porpoise watching in the Scottish Highlands". It lists good locations all around the coasts and tells you what you might see there and when. It also has pictures and descriptions to help identify the various species. I couldn't find an online copy of it, but there's plenty of other info online about them, such as....

http://www.snh.org.uk/pdfs/publications/naturallyscottish/whales.pdf

I was talking to a lady at John O'Groats today who says that this has been a great year for watching whales and dolphins in that area, with regular sightings of Orcas. She told me that one Orca had stayed in clear view from the shore for about four hours!

I went walking around Duncansby Head this afternoon (just to the east of John O'Groats) and saw several grey seals just off the beach, and a group of about twenty others laid dozing on the rocks near the sea stacks. No whales or dolphins today though!

 

[kimbowbill]

For anyone interested in whale-watching etc, I got a really useful leaflet from a Tourist Information Centre yesterday, called "Whale, dolphin and porpoise watching in the Scottish Highlands". It lists good locations all around the coasts and tells you what you might see there and when. It also has pictures and descriptions to help identify the various species. I couldn't find an online copy of it, but there's plenty of other info online about them, such as....

http://www.snh.org.uk/pdfs/publications/naturallyscottish/whales.pdf

I was talking to a lady at John O'Groats today who says that this has been a great year for watching whales and dolphins in that area, with regular sightings of Orcas. She told me that one Orca had stayed in clear view from the shore for about four hours!

I went walking around Duncansby Head this afternoon (just to the east of John O'Groats) and saw several grey seals just off the beach, and a group of about twenty others laid dozing on the rocks near the sea stacks. No whales or dolphins today though!

Duncansby head - oh what a place that is, you've probably been Scampa but if not, try to get to Balnakeil Bay just North of Durness, there's a little church and graveyard where you can park up for the night, the locals are fantastic, they welcome you to stay, (how refreshing) there's a little shop in the village, well stocked, anyhow, there's a walk, 11 mile there and back but its spectacular, takes you right to the edge of the world, and the beach, oh my, not the best pictures but you get the gist, only problem is the beaches are soooooo crowded lol

 

[champstar]

When we go to Channory point have never not seen a dolphin. But you have to stay and wait perhaps for hours. We stay at Clootie well and get up early and drive to Channory for before 8am to get a good spot for the Van. Get there early and you might get treated to the otter fishing nearby.
We leave later in the day and go back to Clootie well for a wild camp.

Though at this time of year the dolphins are more scarce.

 

[maingate]

We never saw the Dolphins a week or so ago. It was just on High Tide when we were at Chanonry Point and someone told me later that an hour either side of Low Tide is the best time to see them.

It was a bit too wild to hang about for long so we gave up.

Didn't see the Loch Ness Monster either.

 

[scampa]

Duncansby head - oh what a place that is, you've probably been Scampa but if not, try to get to Balnakeil Bay just North of Durness, there's a little church and graveyard where you can park up for the night, the locals are fantastic, they welcome you to stay, (how refreshing) there's a little shop in the village, well stocked, anyhow, there's a walk, 11 mile there and back but its spectacular, takes you right to the edge of the world, and the beach, oh my, not the best pictures but you get the gist, only problem is the beaches are soooooo crowded lol

Yes, I went to Balnakeil Bay last week... it's a gorgeous place and the sandy beach, like the others on the north coast, are as good as any I've seen in the UK. But as you say, you struggle to find a place to sunbathe unless you get there early lol. I didn't explore it too much though... there's some military folk doing some construction work there at the moment, driving their fancy all-wheel-drive vehicles all over it. (They told me exactly what they're doing of course, but I'm afraid I can't tell you unless you have top-level clearance!)

The church and graveyard did look a great spot to stay, but the Durness area still has those big yellow "No Overnight Parking" signs at every possible stopping-point! I know I could ignore them, but they don't make me feel very welcome, so I used a POI overlooking Loch Eriboll (not "Orrible") to the east .

And I was almost put off hiking for good when I was on Skye. I know that a lot of Scotsmen like to wear the kilt, and very fine and dandy it looks too.... in the right place. But there was this hiker sporting his kilt ahead of me up in the hills! They say that if you don't like heights then don't look down..... but to be honest, I was more scared of looking up!! :scared:

Going back to dolphins in the Moray Firth, the info brochure that I got today says that the best time to see them is "on an incoming tide when the dolphins play and feed on the fish brought in by the strong currents" (at Chanonry Point). But I don't think any wildlife watching goes by a strict timetable, and luck is always a big factor.

I've found some new POI's with long range panoramic views of the sea, ideal for whale-spotting in comfort, but I'll wait til I get home before posting them, in case I decide to use them while I'm up here!

And as for the Loch Ness Monster, I might do a circuit or two of Loch Ness as I head south, so watch the front pages!

 

[scampa]

By the way, it'd be no use asking Morgan The Moon to suggest a good place to see Whales... he'd probably suggest Merthyr Tydfil.

 

[mumumum4]

It's the wrong time of year to see dolphins in the Moray Firth. We were at Fort George a couple of weeks ago and the guy there told us the dolphins are only usually there from May till early Sept. We saw adults and a baby dolphin in August a couple of years back. The shore just near Fort George is still a great place to wildcamp. As for seals, a labrador was killed by a seal whilst swimming in the sea near Aberdeen this week, so just watch out for them with your dogs.

Alison

 

[kimbowbill]

Yes, I went to Balnakeil Bay last week... it's a gorgeous place and the sandy beach, like the others on the north coast, are as good as any I've seen in the UK. But as you say, you struggle to find a place to sunbathe unless you get there early lol. I didn't explore it too much though... there's some military folk doing some construction work there at the moment, driving their fancy all-wheel-drive vehicles all over it. (They told me exactly what they're doing of course, but I'm afraid I can't tell you unless you have top-level clearance!)

The church and graveyard did look a great spot to stay, but the Durness area still has those big yellow "No Overnight Parking" signs at every possible stopping-point! I know I could ignore them, but they don't make me feel very welcome, so I used a POI overlooking Loch Eriboll (not "Orrible") to the east .

And I was almost put off hiking for good when I was on Skye. I know that a lot of Scotsmen like to wear the kilt, and very fine and dandy it looks too.... in the right place. But there was this hiker sporting his kilt ahead of me up in the hills! They say that if you don't like heights then don't look down..... but to be honest, I was more scared of looking up!! :scared:

Going back to dolphins in the Moray Firth, the info brochure that I got today says that the best time to see them is "on an incoming tide when the dolphins play and feed on the fish brought in by the strong currents" (at Chanonry Point). But I don't think any wildlife watching goes by a strict timetable, and luck is always a big factor.

I've found some new POI's with long range panoramic views of the sea, ideal for whale-spotting in comfort, but I'll wait til I get home before posting them, in case I decide to use them while I'm up here!

And as for the Loch Ness Monster, I might do a circuit or two of Loch Ness as I head south, so watch the front pages!

:lol-049::lol-049::lol-049::lol-049::lol-049:

You've probably read this thread Scamps

http://www.wildcamping.co.uk/forums...arking-signs-stage-2-a.html?highlight=stage+2

i think you will be fine parking, but like you say, there's plenty other places, if you need a site for anything, there's a little site just in Kinlochbervie, the chap who owns it is a right character,and his cat, but the site is right on the hilltop, this is where we saw the basking sharks, oh so many places to go, i so envy you, do you need someone to help you drive? wash ure van? cook? clean? help you reverse? ANYTHING lol x

Jen

 

[maingate]

It's the wrong time of year to see dolphins in the Moray Firth. We were at Fort George a couple of weeks ago and the guy there told us the dolphins are only usually there from May till early Sept. We saw adults and a baby dolphin in August a couple of years back. The shore just near Fort George is still a great place to wildcamp. As for seals, a labrador was killed by a seal whilst swimming in the sea near Aberdeen this week, so just watch out for them with your dogs.

Alison

We must have just missed you as we were there around then. Was there a caravan parked up when you were there?

We spoke to a local chap from Ardesier and he said the water is too shallow at the Fort George side and that is why the Dolphins only come over occasionally.

 

[mumumum4]

We must have just missed you as we were there around then. Was there a caravan parked up when you were there?

We spoke to a local chap from Ardesier and he said the water is too shallow at the Fort George side and that is why the Dolphins only come over occasionally.

hi, we were there for one night on Sun 23rd Sept. There was one other MH which, I think, was Dutch. We had been 1 night at the Hermitage at Dunkeld and then 2 nights at Newtonmore and were heading home when we stayed at Fort George.

Alison

 

[maingate]

hi, we were there for one night on Sun 23rd Sept. There was one other MH which, I think, was Dutch. We had been 1 night at the Hermitage at Dunkeld and then 2 nights at Newtonmore and were heading home when we stayed at Fort George.

Alison

We just missed you because we were on course to get there for the 23rd but had a couple of nights at the Portsoy campsite as it was blowing a full gale and raining stair rods. This put us 2 days late getting there. On the way there, we called in to Findhorn (no good for a big tag axle van) and checked the Lossiemouth car park POI (again no good for a big van). After Ft George, we moved on to the Black Isle and found nowhere big enough to wild. To my eternal shame, I was forced to book a night on the C & CC Club Site at Rosemarkie. At least it does not look like the typical Club Site setup and was OK. I cannot remember the last time we stayed on a Club Site.

 

[scampa]

STOP-PRESS....

I was at Chanonry Point at abouit 8am this morning. According to local paper, that was supposed to be high tide time, but it looked to me as if the tide had been going out for an hour or so (will get more accurate times next time).

I stayed for a couple of hours and saw about half a dozen dolphins at various times, either singly or in pairs. You had to be looking at the right moment though, or you would've missed them, as did some other visitors who only watched for a few minutes!

I found a good technique was to pour a cup of hot coffee, then a dolphin would appear. After trying to get photo's and watching it swim out of range, my coffee was always cold!!

Was it this this spot that featured on some nature program on TV a few weeks ago? It might have been Julia Bradbury travelling around Britain or something similar? If so, that showed groups of dolphins having a feeding frenzy right next to the beach as the tide brought the fish in!

Gloriously warm and sunny around here today, so I might have to linger longer!! (oops, sorry Jen, didn't mean to make you more envious!!)

 

[scampa]

Ooooh, that's soo tempting..... and the best offer I've had since the nice lady in Wick launderette asked if I'd like her to press anything for me!! (watch out for a PM in the early hours if I can't sleep!)

 

[kimbowbill]

Ooooh, that's soo tempting..... and the best offer I've had since the nice lady in Wick launderette asked if I'd like her to press anything for me!! (watch out for a PM in the early hours if I can't sleep!)

lol, its a good job she didn't offer to straighten your creases :lol-049::lol-049::lol-049:

 

[scampa]

We just missed you because we were on course to get there for the 23rd but had a couple of nights at the Portsoy campsite as it was blowing a full gale and raining stair rods. This put us 2 days late getting there. On the way there, we called in to Findhorn (no good for a big tag axle van) and checked the Lossiemouth car park POI (again no good for a big van). After Ft George, we moved on to the Black Isle and found nowhere big enough to wild. To my eternal shame, I was forced to book a night on the C & CC Club Site at Rosemarkie. At least it does not look like the typical Club Site setup and was OK. I cannot remember the last time we stayed on a Club Site.

Here's an existing POI that should be big enough for any wildologists' needs....

https://maps.google.com/?ll=57.55419,-4.24558&z=19&t=h

I called there today to check it out. Just a word of warning though.... the white hut there is a bird-hide, and when I had a look in I found the internal door handle was missing. The loud bang that the heavy wooden door made as it slammed shut was like a shotgun going off, and scattered all the birds in the area!! Luckily no twitchers were present at the time!

 

[Canalsman]

Here's an existing POI that should be big enough for any wildologists' needs....

https://maps.google.com/?ll=57.55419,-4.24558&z=19&t=h

I called there today to check it out. Just a word of warning though.... the white hut there is a bird-hide, and when I had a look in I found the internal door handle was missing. The loud bang that the heavy wooden door made as it slammed shut was like a shotgun going off, and scattered all the birds in the area!! Luckily no twitchers were present at the time!

This has been in the POIs for some time - CR Munlochy ...

Regards

Chris

 

[isle of skye]

Do go further......

Ah my scotland.... i do agree with some of the others if you going that far then just cross over to the west the viewa the mountains and the sea lochs are an absolute must. I n fact can i squeeze in, it will be next year till i can get back there so enjoy.

 

[scampa]

Still not got any set planyet when we head up to Scotland but we are thinking we may head up as far as Moray Firth....Is it as nice what people say ???

Appreciate any feedback

In spite of what we've all said about the north and west being so great, I've spent the last few days around the Moray Firth area, and it really is a great place to spend some time!

The scenery is very, erm, scenic, with plenty of coastal areas of course to watch for seals and dolphins etc. If you like ancient monuments, standing stones, cairns etc there's plenty to choose from. Clava Cairns, near Culloden is well worth a look as it's one of the best preserved set of burial sites in the country. The car park there (already a POI) is fine for sleeping, before exploring at dawn! Loads of other attractions to keep families entertained in the area too. (have I spent too long in the Tourist Information Centres??)

I called at the Seal and Dolphin Centre in North Kessock (just north of the Inverness bridge on the A9), but it was closed for the season. The very helpful chap at the nearby Tourist Info told me that dolphins are mostly seen in the area in the months of June, July, August and September, as later in the year the fish are further out at sea, and the dolphins go with them. You still might see some odd ones like I did yesterday morning.

There is another Dolphin Centre at Spey Bay, to the east of Lossiemouth, which is apparently still open, but it was too far out of my way to visit.

One weather forecast predicts a metre of snow in the Cairngorms this weekend, so I could be up here for the winter!! (I'll add some new POI's when I get home to a proper computer and internet!)

 

[madria]

poi

Hi scampa - if your in the area for a while you could have a look at this place - the car park in front of the Community Centre on East Street in Balintor, nice little cafe inside it as well and the staff very friendly, but I think it was only open till mid afternoon, there were no signs there, but now it dos'nt matter. You may also find a couple of places in Shandwick Bay area just off the beach

 

[scampa]

This has been in the POIs for some time - CR Munlochy ...

Regards

Chris

Hence my use of the term "existing POI" lol.

PS... I'm sleeping at another existing POI tonight. This one is near the top of a waterfall and the forecast is for heavy rain. If I wake up at the bottom of the waterfall in the morning, who do I sue... Canalsman or the person who submitted the POI?? :boat: