Places to see in ( Strathpeffer - UK )
Places to see in ( Strathpeffer - UK )
Strathpeffer is a village and spa town in Ross and Cromarty, Highland, Scotland, with a population of 1,469. It lies in a glen five miles west of Dingwall, with varying elevation from 200 to 400 feet above sea level. Sheltered on the west and north, it has a comparatively dry and warm climate.
Blar Nan Ceann, battle (field) of the heads, lies at the western end of the modern village . Very little is known about the battle there, not even its date, other than the MacKenzies of Seaforth defeated the MacDonells of Glengarry and some incident took place at a well near the battlefield, subsequently called Tobar a' Chinn (well of the head).
The Battle of Blar Na Pairce, battle (field) of the park, in approximately 1486 saw the local MacKenzies, under their chief Kenneth MacKenzie, defeat a large invading force of MacDonalds. The battlefield lies south-west of the modern village, on the banks of Loch Kinellan. The loch contains a crannog, which remained a hunting seat of the Earls of Ross until the late medieval period and was reportedly visited by Robert The Bruce during his reign. It was from this crannog that Kenneth MacKenzie went out to meet the MacDonalds.
The Battle of Drumchatt took place in 1497 on Drumchatt (Druimchat) or the Cat's Back, a ridge to the southeast of Strathpeffer. The Clan Mackenzie and Clan Munro defeated the invading Clan MacDonald of Lochalsh. In the Victorian era Strathpeffer was popular as a spa resort, owing to the discovery of sulphurous springs in the 18th century. The pump-room in the middle of the village dates from 1819. Soon after that, a hospital and a hotel were also built. In 1942 the Spa hospital was destroyed by fire. The Strathpeffer Pavilion dates from 1880, and was built to provide a venue for entertainment of the visitors. It fell into disuse and disrepair towards the end of last century, but has now been restored as a new venue for the arts, weddings, other functions, and events of all kinds.
The arrival of the railways in Dingwall in 1862 did much to bring more visitors to the town. In 1885 a branch line from the Kyle of Lochalsh Line was built and Strathpeffer railway station was opened on 3 June; the most logical route for the line to Kyle of Lochalsh was through the town, but disagreements with landowners initially prevented the railway from crossing their land. The branch closed in February 1946. The station now contains a variety of shops and craft outlets as well as the Highland Museum of Childhood. The nearest stations are now in Dingwall and Garve.
Strathpeffer's distinctive Victorian architecture has added to its appeal. Strathpeffer contains several large hotels and many guest houses, holiday cottages and B&B establishments. There is a scenic golf course, which boasts the longest drop from tee to green of any course in Britain.
Strathpeffer is the home of one of the world's most extreme mountain bike races, the Strathpuffer, a 24-hour race held in January each year. Organised by Square Wheels bike shop, it uses the local trail network and regularly attracts over 400 competitors.
The Strathpeffer and District Pipe Band and local Highland dancers perform in the square every Saturday from end May to September, and this is a popular gathering for both visitors and residents. Nearby is Castle Leod, seat of the Earl of Cromartie, Chief of the Clan Mackenzie, which is now open to the public several times a year. The annual Strathpeffer Highland Gathering, one of the longest-established Highland Games in Scotland, takes place in the grounds of Castle Leod every August.
( Strathpeffer - UK ) is well know as a tourist destination because of the variety of places you can enjoy while you are visiting Strathpeffer . Through a series of videos we will try to show you recommended places to visit in Strathpeffer - UK
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Lochcarron to Contin - The Scottish Adventure - Episode Four
In this episode we complete the first day of our Scottish Adventure, travelling from Eilean Donnan Castle to the Ross-shire village of Contin.
Contin (Gaelic: Cunndainn) is a Ross-shire village and civil parish between Strathpeffer and Garve in the Highland council area of Scotland.
The church in Contin is dedicated to St Maelrubha or Máel Ruba and is on Contin Island which lies in the Black Water (Conon) and is reached from the rest of the village by two bridges, one foot and the other road. The present building dates back to the 18th century but there has probably been a church on this site since the 7th or 8th century.
Between 1485 and 1487 the Macdonalds and some of their allies (about 1,000 men) meeting in Contin, on their way to a punitive raid against the Mackenzies of Kinellan, discovered the church to be filled with women, children and the elderly trusting in its sanctuary. Alexander Macdonald ordered the building to be surrounded so that none could escape, he then gave orders to set the church on fire, and all of the several hundred within were burnt to death. Vengeance from the Mackenzies and Macreas was swift and after the battle at Pairc, only one or two hundred out of the 2,000 Macdonalds and their followers escaped alive.
The Retro Lab's Scottish Adventure is a two thousand mile road trip around Scotland in which we continued our mission to find Britain's (and maybe even the world's) best driving roads, also visiting many castles and other points-of-interest along the way, but it didn't go quite how we had planned....
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