Scotland
Hill of Nigg
205M
673FT
About Hill of Nigg
Rising steeply above the Cromarty Firth, this coastal Marilyn offers a grandstand view of the Sutors. The climb through gorse and woodland leads to a summit overlooking the industrial scale of the Nigg fabrication yard, contrasting sharply with the sweeping Moray Firth and the distant peaks of the Cairngorms.
Key Statistics
Rank
292nd Highest in Region
Parent Range
North West Highlands
Prominence
?
191m
Nearest Town
Nigg
Geology
You are walking on the Loch Ness Supergroup, a foundation of ancient sandy and muddy rocks that were compressed and hardened into the solid ground beneath your feet.
Nearby Fells
Find It
OS Grid Reference
NH820705
Latitude
57.7091°N
Longitude
3.9810°W
Did You Know?
- •The name is derived from the Scottish Gaelic An Neag, meaning 'the notch', which refers to a prominent narrow cleft in the hillside situated just above the parish church.
- •Known locally as the North Sutor, the hill forms one half of the dramatic 'gateway' to the Cromarty Firth; its twin, the South Sutor, sits directly across the water on the Black Isle.
- •A walk here is often paired with a visit to the 8th-century Nigg Stone, one of the finest surviving examples of Pictish sculpture, housed in the old parish church at the foot of the hill.
- •From the summit, looking east across the water provides an unobstructed view toward the Bin of Cullen on the Moray coast, while the peaks of Ben Wyvis dominate the inland horizon to the west.
- •It is perhaps the only Marilyn in Scotland where you can count the barnacles on a multi-million pound oil rig from your lunch spot without the need for binoculars.