What's on in Caithness

Caithness is a historic local government area in Northern Scotland as well as being a registration county and a lieutenancy area. It has one land boundary with the historic local government area of Sutherland although the majority of the county is surrounded by sea. Caithness has ferry links with Orkney and there is an airport at Wick. The area also includes the Pentland Firth island of Stroma. Major towns and villages include Wick, Watten, Thurso, Mey, Reay, Sibster, Burnside, Castletown, Dunnet, Halkirk, Haster, Reiss and John o’ Groats. It has a resident population of approximately 25,000 people.

Caithness is a region packed with history and has numerous remains of pre-historic settlements, from the Grey Cairns of Camster to a complex of sites on Loch Yarrows and more than 100 brochs. In addition there is a prehistoric souterrain structure that has been compared to the discoveries at Shapinsay and Midgarth. Of the thousands of Norse settlers that came later and settled along the coast there are also a number of castle ruins still in place and a number of local names of places are Norse in origin. Caithness was, for a long time, a cause of dispute between the Norwegian Earldom of Orkney and Scotland, but in 1266 the Treaty of Perth led to Norway recognizing Caithness as fully Scottish.

Compared to the rest of Northern Scotland Caithness is comparatively flat and until late into the 20th century was very open and desolate; recently however large areas have been planted in conifers. Nevertheless it is a land of gently rolling farms, moorland and the occasional village or town. The coastal scenery is spectacular and the diversity of sea life and sea birds is unparalleled. Inland the area known as Flow Country has Europe’s largest expanse of blanket bog.

Highlights of Caithness include Dunnet Head, the most northerly point of the mainland (with magnificent views out to Orkney) and John o’ Groats, (just to say you’ve been there); the museum and town of Wick, Pulteney Distillery, the Grey Cairns of Camster and the secret prisoner of war camp between Wick and Thurso. The Castle of Mey and its glorious gardens are well worth a visit as is Phillip’s Harbour nearby. Caithness may be well off the beaten track but it should not be ignored.