The Moray Firth
The Moray Firth is a vast, triangular shaped body of water situated along the coast of north east Scotland. The firth has a four hundred and ninty seven square mile coastline, measures twenty nine miles wide at it's narrowest point, thirty four miles wide at it's widest point and encompasses an area of over twelve thousand square miles, making it Scotland's largest firth or bay.
The areas rocky shoreline, sandy bays, mudflats and salt marshes have made the area a haven for wild life, with thousands of marine and bird species abundant within the area, including dolphins, whales and seals. The firth is also an important oil field and fishing ground and a popular tourist and water sports destination.
The firth's coastline from Duncansby Head in the very north of Scotland through to to Fraserborough on Aberdeenshire's north coast encompasses several towns and cities, including the Scottish mainland's most northerly town of Wick, capital of the Highlands, the city of Inverness, the RAF town of Lossiemouth, the coastal towns of Nairn, Elgin and Banff and the major fishing ports of Peterhead and Fraserborough.
These areas have all become popular tourist destinations owing to the area's stunning natural beauty, it's many castles, whisky distilleries, special protection areas, small port and harbour towns, large fishing ports and dramatic, rugged coastline.
The Moray Firth is also made up of several bays and sea inlets, including Beuly Firth, Burghead Bay, Cove Bay, Dornoch Firth, Cromarty Firth, inverness Firth, Munlochy Bay and Pentland Firth.
The River Spey flows into Spey Bay, the United Kingdom's largest coastal, vegetated shingle complex, where visitors can find the interesting and highly informative, Moray Firth Wildlife Centre.
The Moray Firth is an arm of the North Sea, which is also fed by several rivers, including the seven mile long, River Ness, the five mile long, River Findhorn, the thirty one mile long, River Lossie, the thirty eight mile long, River Nairn and the one hundred and nine mile long, River Spey.
The firth is also the northern outlet of the sixty mile long, Caledonian Canal, which links the west coast of Scotland with it's east coast by way of linking four Scottish lochs with a canal, four aqueducts and a system of twenty nine locks.
The firth is also served by two impressive, modern bridges, the three thousand, six hundred and fifty five foot long, Kessock Bridge, pictured above, which was opened in 1982, which links Inverness with the Black Isle across the Beauly Firth and the two thousand, nine hundred and twenty nine foot long, Dornoch Bridge, which was opened in 1991 and links Inverness with Thurso across the Pentland Firth.
The Moray Firth's coastline is served by eight operational lighthouses between Duncansby Head on the firth's north shore and Kinnaid Head on the firth's south shore.
SOME MORAY FIRTH WEBSITES
TRAVEL - www.morayholidays.co.uk
GEOGRAPHY - www.moray.gov.uk
LIKE THIS? SHOW YOUR FRIENDS - Tweet
