I nearly trod on this little fellow on the path beside the loch.

Just a bit south of Inverness for today’s pictures from Loch Ruthven. This first is of the loch itself and the other two are of the ‘special bird‘ there – although these were taken with the big lens and the camera handheld……..

We also spotted 2 Red-throated divers (who don’t breed on this loch but seem to like it), two red-breasted mergansers and an osprey having a look but not fishing.

Yesterday was the South Sutor, today is the North Sutor.

Established in 1972, Nigg Yard was built to service the construction and repair of the largest maritime structures. It extends to 96.14 hectares (238 acres) combining extensive fabrication/warehousing buildings, generous yards, dry dock and quayside in a strategic North Sea location. It has stood substantially vacant since 2002/03 and was offered for disposal on the market in February 2005.

Today’s pictures are taken a bit further north on the Black Isle and are from the region round the South Sutor of Cromarty.

If you had read the link, you would know that many deserted military installations remain in this area and the first two photographs are of one of them – obviously the trees wouldn’t have been there at that time!

The third photograph is from the path to the South Sutor looking towards Cromarty itself.

Today’s pictures come from the other side of the Moray Firth from yesterday. They were taken on the Black Isle at or near the very pretty village of Rosemarkie.

The first 2 are on a walk along the beach to the west of Rosemarkie.

Whilst the 3rd is of the bank below the Parish Church taken from the sea-front.

Just to the South of yesterday’s photos, lies the town of Forres. Apart from being a very pretty town in it’s own right, it also houses a unique monument, Sueno’s Stone. Excuse the quality of the photographs; the monument is encased in armoured glass, to prevent deterioration, which makes photographing it difficult.

Text as per Historic Scotland:

Standing at over 6 metres high, Sueno’s Stone is Scotland’s tallest surviving cross-slab and one of the most richly-carved examples of Pictish art in Scotland. The name — Sueno’s Stone — was invented in the 18th century when the stone was discovered buried in the ground. It has no bearing on the origin of the monument.

Only the stone itself and its location can give any hint of why and when it was created and on whose orders.
– A ring-head cross fills most of the front face, its shaft, base and background infilled with interlace decoration. Beneath the base two figures lean over a smaller figure, while two small attendants wait in the background.
– Each narrow side is intricately decorated with interlace designs, including delightful spirals of foliage in which small human figures are perched.
– A great battle scene is depicted in four panels on the back face, involving cavalry, foot soldiers and the beheading of the defeated. From the arrival of one army in the top panel, to the battle itself and the rout of the defeated force in the middle panels, to the dispersal of the fallen army in the bottom panel, this face clearly illustrates an event of considerable importance.

But who was fighting who? The artistic style of Sueno’s Stone, with its fine mixture of Pictish, Irish and Northumbrian tradition, suggest that it was carved in the 9th or 10th century. In which case, there are three possibilities.
– One possibility is that the stone marks the vanquishing of the Picts by the Scots, under Kenneth mac Alpin, in the mid 9th century.
– A second possibility is that the stone relates to a confrontation between a local Picto-Scottish force and the marauding Norsemen sometime in the late 9th or early 10th century. The great Pictish fort at nearby Burghead appears to have been destroyed about then.
– The third possibility is that the stone refers to a conflict fought at Forres in 966 during which the Scottish king, Dubh, was killed by the men of Moray. After the battle the dead king’s body apparently lay beneath the bridge at Kinloss, a short distance away. Is the curious arched object near the bottom of the battle scene this bridge? And is the specially framed head from one of the decapitated bodies that of King Dubh?

The absence of an inscription on the stone forbids a firm conclusion.

Further North yet, to the south shore of the Moray Firth. Although we had glorious sunshine, you’ll see from the third photograph that it was not warm.

The fourth photograph is of Findhorn from the north side of Findhorn Bay.

After the early start I showed you yesterday, followed by an excellent and relatively inexpensive breakfast in the Cairngorm Hotel, Aviemore, we decided to do a trip up the Cairngorm Funicular Railway.

One or two photos from there:

We are just back from a short break up in the Inverness area where we managed to fit in some bird watching.

We were up very early for a 5.30 am start to a Capercaille watch at the Loch Garten reserve belonging to the RSPB.

We did see three male Capercailles, but they were at such a distance that a telescope was needed to identify them properly, so no photos of them.

However the reserve also is home to nesting Ospreys and here is a very early morning shot with one bird on the nest at the left (which is really obscured by the post keeping the nest up there) and the silhouette of the male perched on the tree beside the camera mast.

I also include two photographs from slightly later on showing the area in which the reserve is set.

Dalquharran Castle, or more properly New Dalquharran Castle since there is an Old Dalquharran Castle, was commissioned in 1781 from Robert Adam and completed in 1790. It had further significant additions made in the 1880s. It is now only a magnificent shell.

I’ve just located a new site which seems to be in the process of being built.