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Easter Ross
The Attractions of the District


For people who believe that a holiday is best spent in some favourite out-door pursuit and thus rest and renew vital energies, few districts in Scotland afford such a great variety of attractions as Easter Ross. There are three ideal seaside golf courses. There are miles upon miles of beautiful sandy beaches from which bathers can safely get into clear salt water, and on which children can play in clean sand or wade in clear water by the hour. For the geologist who can follow in the steps of Hugh Miller, the whole district is full of special interest. Those who delight in shells, land or marine, or the natural history of the sea shore, will find much to interest them. For the artist there are many combinations of mountains and moors beautiful from many standpoints, wide stretches of landscape and seascape ; and as light, shade, and colour vary all day long, there is a never-ending variety of subjects for the brush or pencil. The sociologist and the antiquary will find the place brimful of interest, while those who delight in boating and sailing can do so safely. Everywhere around there is a contented and prosperous population possessed of that kindness and courtesy natural to Highlanders. The cost of living is certainly much more moderate than in many district which offer fewer attractions.

Tain, the centre of the district, is by rail within eight hours of Edinburgh and Glasgow, and within sixteen hours of London. Mails are received and despatched thrice daily and the trunk telephone system has been extended to Tain.

There are many points from which the widest of views of scenic beauty can easily be obtained. Thus if a person stands at Invergordon Harbour he can on a clear day see across the Moray Firth, and, skirting the horizon, the distinctly defined coast of Moray; nearer, the Sutors of Cromarty forming the gateway through which the waters enter, and which immediately within expand into a broad and beautiful bay with the old town of Cromarty nestling cosily on the southern side ; on the north a rich and fertile country with a magnificent background of hills. Other points commanding even wider sweeps are Nigg Hill, from which one can trace the railway from Elgin to Inverness and then right round to Helmsdale; Tarbatness Lighthouse, the top of Tain Tower, and Struie Hill. Everywhere the scenery has the advantage of showing wide sheets of water which add to the charm, for it still continues to be thought that “scenery without water is like a drawing-room without a mirror.”

If a map showing the rainfall in the various parts of the kingdom be consulted it appears that this whole district lies within the driest belt in Scotland, and the rainfall averages less than 24 inches per annum. During the summer months there is much sunshine but the heat is tempered by proximity to the sea. Approximately the average temperature for May is 49°F., June 54°, July 57°, August 56.8°, and September 53°. June is usually an ideal month and the pity is that visitors cannot in larger numbers sojourn here then.

There are in all just about 200 miles of roads beautifully kept, and the surface is all that can be wished for by motorists and cyclists.


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