Chanonry Point and Black Isle Coastal Walk

Chanonry Point is internationally celebrated as one of the best places in Britain to watch dolphins from the shore, and this coastal walk combines the point itself with fine beaches, historic sites, and sweeping views across the Moray Firth to Fort George.

The route starts in Fortrose, by the ruins of the town's medieval cathedral, where parking is available. Heading up to the High Street and along it, the route passes fine Arts and Crafts style houses before a sharp turn down St Andrews Walk to the harbour, continuing past attractive cottages and through a caravan park while keeping close to the sea. A public footpath sign marks the way ahead to Chanonry Point, a mile further on — the path winds through gorse before running close to the shore alongside the golf course, where stray balls are an occasional hazard.

At the end of the golf course, the path passes behind the sixth tee to reach the Chanonry Point car park, its turning circle marked by a striking sculpture, "The Dolphin and the Bee" by Stuart Murdoch, alongside a memorial to the Brahan Seer, reputedly burned to death in boiling tar here as a warning to astrologers. The point itself has a lighthouse and fine views across to Fort George, but its real fame today is for dolphin-watching — bottlenose dolphins regularly hunt in the narrow channel here, especially on an incoming tide, sometimes coming remarkably close to shore.

For those extending the walk back to Fortrose via a different route, a signed path opposite the car park climbs steeply through trees to Swallows Den, with good views down into a ravine and back over Chanonry Point, before descending on a road back into the town — though this section can be steep, overgrown, and muddy in places, and can be avoided by simply returning to Fortrose the way you came via Rosemarkie.

This is a highly rewarding, easy coastal walk suitable for most visitors, with waymarked paths throughout; timing a visit for an incoming tide, ideally around an hour after low water, gives the best chance of a dolphin sighting.

Parking by the cathedral ruins in Fortrose is free; a bus service runs to Fortrose from Inverness.