Caithness

The land where two worlds meet

Caithness is a truly magnificent landscape that combines fertile farmland and endless vistas – and bears the marks of human settlement stretching back over 10,000 years. The Grey Cairns of Camster date from early prehistory, but there are many stories to be found elsewhere that tell of the dramatic forces that shaped this land and its people; including the Clearances, the herring industry and flagstone quarrying.

Today, the bustling communities of Caithness offer a unique brand of Norse-Scottish culture and the long history of the area is told in the North Coast Visitor Centre in Thurso. Indeed, heritage echoes in the very names of past and present settlements such as Badbea, Kildonan, Castletown and Dunbeath, the latter the birth place of Neil M Gunn, the far north’s most famous writer.

Elsewhere, the fine beaches, fast rivers and dark inland lochs make Caithness a popular destination with all watersports enthusiasts. Indeed, among surfers, paddle boarders, kayakers and sailors, the wild waters of the far north are much loved.