Black Isle Summer 2002 taken on 4 August 2002
The Moray Firth and Dolphins
Communications have been improved with a by-pass and new bridge point for the A9
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Avoch on Black Isle is a pleasant place
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Avoch harbour at low water.
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The dolphin trips operating from this hut are popular
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Lighthouse and spit at Chanonry Point
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The beach is a well known place for spotting dolphins, seals, birds, and even otters.
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A bank of fog moves in towards Fortrose from the Moray Firth.
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The only dolphin caught on camera, though we saw plenty of action.
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The lighthouse and Chanonry Point, this time from the sea on the dolphin hunt!
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Homeward bound after a successful trip.
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The Cromarty Firth
The water is deeper than the Moray Firth by Inverness, so more use for shipping. The existence of a naval base meant the infrastructure, and a trained workforce, was ready to build and maintain rigs when North Sea Oil was being developed.
The liner docked at Invergordon is the 50,000 tonne Crystal Symphony with 1,250 American passengers.I
In this one week in August, five cruise ships docked for a day or two, with over 4,200 American and German, and Belgian passengers.
From here coach trips could be made to castles, distilleries and gardens all across the Highlands, bring a useful economic boost.
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Rigs are renovated at the nearby yard
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The Cromarty Firth was an important naval base, and still has fuel bunkers and jetties suitable for large ships
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The drop in North Sea exploration means several rigs are mothballed
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A rig from Newhall Point.
New hall
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The foreshore at Cromarty
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The Nigg rig construction yards across the mouth of the Cromarty Firth from Cromarty.
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