The Great Glen - The Rough Guide to Scottish Highlands and Islands - page 207

gargoyles and crenellations whimsically shooting off from the original keep - is still
well worth a visit.

Fort George
13 miles northeast of Inverness, near Ardersier • Daily: April-Sept 9.30am-5.30pm; Oct-March 9.30am-4.30pm • £8.90; HS • T 01667
460 232 • As with Cawdor Castle (see p.209), book a taxi or Dial-a-Bus service to take you from Nairn
Eight miles of undulating coastal farmland separate Cawdor Castle from Fort George ,
an old Hanoverian bastion with walls a mile long, considered by military architectural
historians to be one of the finest fortifications in Europe. Crowning a sandy spit that
juts into the middle of the Moray Firth, it was built between 1747 and 1769 as a base
for George II's army, in case the Highlanders should attempt to rekindle the Jacobite
flame. By the time of its completion, however, the uprising had been firmly quashed
and the fort has been used ever since as barracks; note the armed sentries at the main
entrance and the periodic crack of live gunfire from the nearby firing ranges.
Walking on the northern, grass-covered casemates, which look out into the estuary,
you may be lucky enough to see a school of bottle-nosed dolphins (see p.208)
swimming in with the tide. This is also a good spot for birdwatching: a colony of
kittiwakes occupies the fort's slate rooftops.

3

Nairn
One of the driest and sunniest places in the whole of Scotland, NAIRN , sixteen miles east
of Inverness, began its days as a peaceful community of fishermen and farmers. The
former spoke Gaelic, the latter English, allowing James VI to boast that a town in his
kingdom was so large that people at one end of the main street could not understand
those at the other end. Nairn became popular in Victorian times, when the train line
offered a convenient link to its revitalizing sea air and mild climate, and today the
11,000-strong population still relies on tourism, with all the ingredients for a traditional
seaside holiday - sandy beach, ice-cream shops and fish-and-chip stalls. The town has
two championship golf courses, and Thomas Telford's harbour is filled with leisure craft
rather than fishing boats.

Nairn Museum
Viewfield House, King St • May-Oct Mon-Fri 10am-4.30pm, Sat 10am-1pm (last admission 30min before closing) • £3 • T 01667
456791, W nairnmuseum.co.uk
he Nairn Museum provides a general insight into the history and prehistory of the area;
the Fishertown Room illustrates the parsimonious and puritanical life of the fishing
families, while the weapon-filled Military Room includes information on the battles of
Culloden and Auldearn.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMAT ION NAIRN

By bus Buses arrive and depart from King St, just south of
the police station.
Destinations Aberdeen (hourly; 3hr 15min); Elgin (every
30min; 45min); Forres (every 30min; 25min); Inverness (up
to 3/hr; 45min).
By train Nairn's station is just south of the centre, where
Chattan Drive meets Cawdor St.
Destinations Aberdeen (every 1-2hr; 2hr); Elgin (every
1-2hr; 25min); Forres (every 1-2hr; 10min); Inverness
(every 1-2hr; 20min).

Bike rental Bikes are available from Bike and Buggy, 6A
Falconers Lane (Mon, Tues, Thurs & Fri 9.30am-5pm, Sat
9.30am-4pm; T 01667 455416, W bikeandbuggy.co.uk),
for £15/day.
Information There's a tourist information point within
the Nairn Community & Arts Centre on King St (Mon-Thurs
8.30am-10pm, Fri 8.30am-late, depending on events, Sat
8.30am-5pm, Sun 9am-1pm & 5-9pm; T 01667 453476,
W nairncommunitycentre.co.uk). Their handy Welcome to
Nairn map is worth picking up.