Beauly Firth

The Beauly Firth is a wide inlet on Scotland’s north-east coast where the River Beauly and River Ness meet the Moray Firth. It stretches from the town of Beauly in the west to Inverness in the east, with the Kessock Bridge crossing its narrowest point. Several burns and the Caledonian Canal feed into its waters, which at low tide reveal wide mudflats and scattered boulders. The firth is home to waterfowl such as the goosander, and its pebbled shores attract artists drawn to the sunset light. The firth has long shaped travel and disputes along the coast. The Kessock Ferry once carried people across until the bridge opened in 1982, linking Inverness to the Black Isle for the first time. Cyclists now follow roads around the firth, though the southern route grows busy at peak hours. Flooding often affects shoreline villages like Bunchrew and Redcastle after heavy rain, as seen during Storm Ciara in 2020. The name Poll an Ròid, meaning ‘Pool of the Cross’, recalls an old stone cross once raised on an islet by friars from Inverness. Ancient remains lie beneath the firth’s surface, including cairns that once held timber and human bones. Geologists believe the area was once covered by a 55-metre glacier whose meltwater carved the valley. Roman records from the 2nd century may refer to the firth as the Varar estuary, a view supported by historian William J. Watson. In the late 19th century, fishermen from the Moray Firth blamed garvie fishing in the Beauly Firth for falling herring catches, sparking calls for a ban. Today, saltmarshes along the coast are protected as a Site of Special Scientific Interest within the Inner Moray Firth Special Protection Area.