Dùthaich a’ Bhodaich ’s a’ Bhradain (A Place of Giants and Salmon)

The hilly south-eastern corner of Caithness is a Scottish gem. Best approached from the attractive coastal village of Dunbeath, the old crofting settlement of Braemore (Am Bràigh Mòr) ‘the big upland’ is well named, as it sits in an extensive area of high, open ground which adjoins the famous pool-studded bogland of the World Heritage-nominated Flow Country. In a county that has a mixed Norse-Gaelic-Scots linguistic heritage, this delightful nook is a piece of the Gaelic Highlands, where the place-names tell us of hares and goats, foxes, deer and cattle. It still feels like a place where nature has stamped its presence firmly on the landscape.

The centrepiece is Morven – the Gaelic Mòr-bheinn ‘great hill’. While only reaching a modest 706 metres in altitude, this steep and shapely eminence draws in the hillwalker, inviting them to cast their eyes across, and perhaps explore, the trackless wilds of the surrounding country. This is also a place of stories, such as the great tale of the The Black-haired Bodach of Morven. The Gaelic word bodach can mean ‘old man’ but here refers to a ‘spectre’ or ‘giant’. This supernatural creature, who robbed the local people of their possessions until captured and put to death, without him revealing the location of his horde of treasure, is said to bemoan his fate in a booming, deep voice whenever black thunder clouds gather over Morven! And the treasure is still out there . . .

Local heritage is celebrated in the Dunbeath Heritage Museum. It’s a great place to find out about the area’s most famous son – the acclaimed author Neil Gunn (1891-1973). Gunn’s novel Highland River is based on the Dunbeath River which flows through his home landscape. He writes of rìgh nan iasg ‘the king of fish’ – the salmon – which returns to its home pool to renew the great cycle of life. Why not renew your own sense of being by visiting this lovely part of northern Scotland?