Chanonry Point

Chanonry Point Chanonry Point, a world-famous dolphin-watching landmark (Scottish Highlands, Moray Firth) near Rosemarkie Bay and Fort George. Community-run page.

Chanonry Point is one of the world's best-known bottlenose dolphin-watching points and it is accessible free of charge with a small fee for parking. Visitors are encouraged to park in Rosemarkie or Fortrose and walk in via one of the coastal paths. Chanonry Point also has a rich history - King James IV crossed here on a pilgrimage, and the rehearsals for D-Day in 1944 saw Valentine tanks embarking

for the beaches at Nairn. More history and wildlife information is available free in a small exhibition at Rosemarkie Beach Café.

On Saturday afternoon a small blow up boat (not designed for use on the sea) left Chanonry Point Car Park and was quickl...
24/03/2026

On Saturday afternoon a small blow up boat (not designed for use on the sea) left Chanonry Point Car Park and was quickly swept out into the middle of the deep water shipping channel. Neither person on board was wearing any safety equipment. Fortunately a local saw them from shore and alerted the Coastguard who tasked Dolphin Spirit tour boat (already in the Firth) to make contact and they effected a safe rescue of the couple.
Chanonry Point is definitely not the place to venture into the water without good knowledge of the tides and currents and the correct safety gear.
This could have ended badly, fortunately thanks to quick thinking and the presence of the tour boat, potential tragedy was averted.
*photo credit to Fiona Johnston

British Divers Marine Life Rescue are going to be running a Marine Mammal Training course on Rosemarkie beach. Volunteer...
17/03/2026

British Divers Marine Life Rescue are going to be running a Marine Mammal Training course on Rosemarkie beach. Volunteers are much needed locally, their area runs from Fort George to Helmsdale. You can sign up via the website. If you can’t make this course there are others running nationally.

03/10/2025

Several power cuts have been reported already across Highland due to

To get the latest information about power outages, download the PowerTrack app, visit: https://powertrack.ssen.co.uk/powertrack or call 105.

Many Point goers will have been out on the Avoch dolphin boat Corbière over the years with skipper/Avoch harbourmaster G...
26/09/2025

Many Point goers will have been out on the Avoch dolphin boat Corbière over the years with skipper/Avoch harbourmaster Gwyn Tanner and his gentle collie Spud, who often knew where to find the dolphins before Gwyn did. A remarkably sweet-natured and intelligent dog. Our thoughts are with Gwyn, Paula and Fleece on this sad day. If you have any pix of Spud taken on Corbière feel free to share them below.

It’s dolphin calf season ☺️ as the dolphin behaviour changes with the season and the type of prey they are feeding on so...
31/08/2025

It’s dolphin calf season ☺️ as the dolphin behaviour changes with the season and the type of prey they are feeding on so their behaviour changes but we have been lucky enough to see a fair bit of activity from the Point and the Mothers and calves have been seen on a good few days. They are beginning to be less predictable in their behaviour but rising tide and being prepared to stay for a few hours watching the water still provides a good chance of sightings just now.

23/08/2025

At the harbour here in Fortrose this Sunday!!!

Thank you to Steve Fort for our new header shot - Steve only realised that there was a tiny calf in the shot when editin...
15/08/2025

Thank you to Steve Fort for our new header shot - Steve only realised that there was a tiny calf in the shot when editing the photos after his visit! This may well be Spirtle, a female dolphin who survived stranding and sunburn, with her new young one. Their gestation period is 12 months, three longer than for a human child, and bottlenose dolphins can live between 40 and 60 years.

While it is very heartening to see our local pod growing, calves are especially vulnerable to being struck by larger, faster vessels, especially those from outside the area. These can be less familiar with the dolphins and often move at higher speeds through Chanonry Point (and other areas where the dolphins gather) than do our two experienced Black Isle based licensed dolphin trip operators.

If you are planning a boat trip through Chanonry Point yourself, please pass through as slowly as possible, allowing the dolphins to approach you rather than the other way round, and never pursue them once they start to move off. Thank you.

Less- and differently-able local folk look forward to this Access Day all year. If your planned visit happens to coincid...
08/07/2025

Less- and differently-able local folk look forward to this Access Day all year. If your planned visit happens to coincide, please be tolerant of parking restrictions and possibly slower access that day. Volunteers will be present to help. Well done to all who plan and run this special day.

We encourage slow tourism and invite those able to do so to make a day of visiting Chanonry Point, and the historic Roya...
19/06/2025

We encourage slow tourism and invite those able to do so to make a day of visiting Chanonry Point, and the historic Royal Burghs of Fortrose and Rosemarkie instead of a quick dash down to the point and back again. You can easily park up for free in one of our pretty villages and walk down to the point. Please respect the signage advising no large vehicles, including larger camper vans. Here's a pictorial guide to whet your appetite for a wee walk 👇

Here in the Black Isle we have two licensed and experienced dolphin boat operators, Dolphin Trips Avoch and EcoVentures,...
04/06/2025

Here in the Black Isle we have two licensed and experienced dolphin boat operators, Dolphin Trips Avoch and EcoVentures, Cromarty. Such a good article in this quarter's local magazine, Chatterbox, about fundraiser extraordinaire Gwyn Tanner, Skipper of Corbière (the Avoch boat) and also a fascinating write up on the life and work of intrepid Sarah Pern, owner-skipper at Ecoventures.

If you are longing to visit the Black Isle again, you can have Chatterbox sent to you - contact details for the award-winning team in attached pix. You can even order a gift subscription as a gift!

In other news, we're having a few problems with Messenger at present so if you have not had a reply to a query over the last day or so, that is the reason. If your query relates to lost property, try Rosemarkie Amenities Association & Beach Cafe as a lot of lost property is dropped off there.

Great news! Access Day is back. Thanks to the amazing Debra and team for the info below 👇'We are in the process of organ...
29/05/2025

Great news! Access Day is back. Thanks to the amazing Debra and team for the info below 👇
'We are in the process of organising this year's Chanonry Point access day. The date we have chosen for this is Saturday 26th July , 10.30am until 3pm. I will keep you updated with the progress. If you have any ideas of anything you would like on that day please get in touch. 😊
Photos are from last year's Chanonry Point access day.'

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Fortrose
IV108SD

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