Cromarty
September 16, 2021
6 Sep. HM 102. Cromarty is much more than a famous name in the shipping forecast! A sheltered Firth, an ancient harbour town and now the resting place of 20th century industrial architecture.
As you enter the Firth, you sail between two dramatic headlands, The Sutors, and immediately there is so much to look at. To the south is the elegant town of Cromarty, built at the tip of the famous Black Isle peninsula. To the north, the industrial port of Nigg which services North Sea oil ships and more recently constructs the bases of wind turbines. And then, stretching ahead of you, the firth opens up and about 20 vast oil rigs sit at anchor. At night these light up like Christmas trees.
The original harbour is considerably older than most others I have visited - with a charter dating back to 1784, it was developed by the Georgians rather than ubiquitous Victorians. Specifically constructed to import raw materials from the Baltic to feed the cloth, rope and ironware factories......history abounds - herring, hemp, writer Hugh Miller, emigration and much much more. I urge you to visit this beautiful town.
Harbour Master Ronald Young (R), together with the chair of the Cromarty Harbour Trust, Colin Dickie (L), gave us such a friendly welcome and Good Dog was the very first visiting yacht allowed to tie up against their newly refurbished (£750,000!) stone quay, against which the ferry is normally moored. As well ferry skipper, Ronald is the volunteer HM, as well as being the volunteer Fireman and volunteer First Responder! His office at the Fire Station is the social hub of the town. He told me about the unique iron bridge connecting the two halves of his harbour which was much used by the RN in both wars. As recently at 2019, the harbour had to be evacuated when a "Churchill Mine", placed in the harbour wall in WW2 in case of invasion, was made safe by the bomb squad.
However it was his Fire Engine with its "quick release" charging plug that amused Good Dog's crew the most - see the video on slide 10. Thank you Ronald and Colin for your superb hospitality and fascinating insight to your harbour.
As you enter the Firth, you sail between two dramatic headlands, The Sutors, and immediately there is so much to look at. To the south is the elegant town of Cromarty, built at the tip of the famous Black Isle peninsula. To the north, the industrial port of Nigg which services North Sea oil ships and more recently constructs the bases of wind turbines. And then, stretching ahead of you, the firth opens up and about 20 vast oil rigs sit at anchor. At night these light up like Christmas trees.
The original harbour is considerably older than most others I have visited - with a charter dating back to 1784, it was developed by the Georgians rather than ubiquitous Victorians. Specifically constructed to import raw materials from the Baltic to feed the cloth, rope and ironware factories......history abounds - herring, hemp, writer Hugh Miller, emigration and much much more. I urge you to visit this beautiful town.
Harbour Master Ronald Young (R), together with the chair of the Cromarty Harbour Trust, Colin Dickie (L), gave us such a friendly welcome and Good Dog was the very first visiting yacht allowed to tie up against their newly refurbished (£750,000!) stone quay, against which the ferry is normally moored. As well ferry skipper, Ronald is the volunteer HM, as well as being the volunteer Fireman and volunteer First Responder! His office at the Fire Station is the social hub of the town. He told me about the unique iron bridge connecting the two halves of his harbour which was much used by the RN in both wars. As recently at 2019, the harbour had to be evacuated when a "Churchill Mine", placed in the harbour wall in WW2 in case of invasion, was made safe by the bomb squad.
However it was his Fire Engine with its "quick release" charging plug that amused Good Dog's crew the most - see the video on slide 10. Thank you Ronald and Colin for your superb hospitality and fascinating insight to your harbour.