Nigg Bay () is a large, relatively shallow sandy bay, consisting of

mudflat Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal ...

saltmarsh A salt marsh, saltmarsh or salting, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It ...

and wet

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominance (ecology), dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes such as clover, and other Herbaceo ...

, located on the north east coast of the

Cromarty Firth The Cromarty Firth (; ; literally "kyles

traits Trait may refer to: * Phenotypic trait in biology, which involve genes and characteristics of organisms * Genotypic trait, sometimes but not always presenting as a phenotypic trait * Personality, traits that predict an individual's behavior. ** ...

of Cromarty") is an arm of the Moray Firth in Scotland. Geography The entrance to the Cromarty Firth is guarded by two precipitous headlands; the one on the north high and the one on the ...

, east of

Invergordon Invergordon (; or ) is a town and port in Easter Ross, in Ross and Cromarty, Highland (council area), Highland, Scotland. It lies in the parish of Rosskeen. History The town built up around the harbour which was established in 1828. The area ...

, in the district of

Ross and Cromarty Ross and Cromarty (), is an area in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. In modern usage, it is a registration county and a Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. Between 1889 and 1975 it was a Shires of Scotland, county. Historical ...

and in the

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

council area of

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally, ''upland'' refers to a range of hills, typically from up to , while ''highland'' is usually reserved for range ...

. At low tide, the Sands of Nigg are exposed. Nigg Bay can be said to start at Balintraid pier – probably the oldest pier on the Cromarty Firth – built by

Thomas Telford Thomas Telford (9 August 1757 – 2 September 1834) was a Scottish civil engineer. After establishing himself as an engineer of road and canal projects in Shropshire, he designed numerous infrastructure projects in his native Scotland, as well ...

in 1821. There is a wartime

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

base alongside the pier and a series of coastal gun emplacements on the road to North Sutor.

RSPB Reserve

Nigg Bay is an extensive area of mudflats, saltmarsh and wet grassland on the Cromarty Firth. Visitors between October and March are sure to see countless wading birds and wildfowl, such as bar-tailed godwits, knots, pink-footed geese and wigeon, feeding and roosting on the mudflats, moving with the tide in and out of the bay. The best time to visit is two hours either side of high-tide, as the birds are pushed up closer to the hide. The summer months bring breeding birds to the wetland areas and saltmarsh. The RSPB are also creating a new area of wet grassland to attract breeding lapwings and redshanks. Up to 10,000 pink-footed geese can be seen feeding in the bay on their return migration to their breeding grounds. Lapwings and oystercatchers prepare for the breeding season here in spring The reserve is well equipped with one wheelchair accessible hide and it is also pushchair friendly.RSPB

Villages

On the south east coast of Nigg Bay lie the village and parish of Nigg, which took its name from the bay, with the village of Pitcalnie further up the coast. On the north west shore of the bay are the villages of Milton to the east side of the shore, Barbaraville almost directly across from the fabrication yard and Balintraid further west. A

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

links the villages of

Cromarty Cromarty (; , ) is a town, civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish and former royal burgh in Ross and Cromarty, in the Highland (council area), Highland area of Scotland. Situated at the tip of the Black Isle on the southern shore of the mout ...

on the

Black Isle The Black Isle (, ) is a peninsula within Ross and Cromarty, in the Scottish Highlands. It includes the towns of Cromarty and Fortrose, and the villages of Culbokie, Resolis, Jemimaville, Rosemarkie, Avoch, Munlochy, Tore, and North Kesso ...

Nigg Ferry Nigg (from the meaning "the notch", referring to a feature of the hills above the parish church) is a village and parish in Easter Ross, administered by the Highland Council. It lies on the north shore of the entrance to the Cromarty Firth. The ...

just prior to its opening into the

Moray Firth The Moray Firth (; , or ) is a roughly triangular inlet (or firth) of the North Sea, north and east of Inverness, which is in the Highland council area of the north of Scotland. It is the largest firth in Scotland, stretching from Duncans ...

Industry

At the south east corner of the bay, is the former oil platform construction and fabrication yard, opened in 1972 by a joint venture of

Brown & Root KBR, Inc. (formerly Kellogg Brown & Root) is a U.S. based company operating in fields of science, technology and engineering. KBR works in various markets including aerospace, defense, industrial and intelligence. After Halliburton acquired Dres ...

and Wimpey Construction. The fabrication yard was " mothballed" some years ago and was put up for sale by KBR in 2006. In 2012 the yard was taken over by the Global Energy Group and renamed Nigg Energy Park. Since the purchase of the fabrication yard by Global Energy Group in 2011 and with investment from the Scottish Government the area has begun to see a new influx of workers to the area again with the yard having plenty of work in the renewable energy sector and also in oil drilling rig refurbishment. In 2012 Global Energy Group set up a skills academy to create new jobs for local residents and young people and this has resulted in a fall in unemployment in the area and a welcome boost to the local economy. The extra work at Nigg has also seen an increase in work at the docks in Invergordon. In addition to this there is also an oil depot operated by

Talisman Energy Talisman Energy Inc. was a Canadian independent petroleum company that existed between 1993 and 2015. The company was created from the assets of BP Canada after British Petroleum divested its 57 percent stake in June 1992. It was one of Canada' ...

where there is a crude oil storage and processing depot for oil piped in from the Beatrice oil field in the Moray Firth.

Balintraid Pier

Probably the oldest pier on the Cromarty Firth built by

in 1821, The 9th report to the Commission on Highland Roads and Bridges, 1821, noted " a Landing Pier of massive dimensions has been erected for the express purpose of facilitating the importation of lime, coals and other articles of consumption in the very fertile district of Easter Ross, and for the exportation of corn and timber." the cost is noted as amounting to "about Two Thousand Four Hundred Pounds; of which Mr Kenneth Macleay contributes a Moiety." The pier still stands today but as of May 2018 the pier is in a very poor state and much of it is beginning to collapse. It has been listed as a "Building at Risk" by "Buildings at Risk Scotland"

References

External links