Out in the Moray Firth

It's cold, grey and generally uninviting outdoors today but that didn't prevent us taking a brisk and enjoyable walk along Golspie's almost deserted south beach. The main interest was....

....a ship at anchor offshore in the firth - an unusual sight here - seen against the Tarbat Ness lighthouse. She's the Fri Porsgrunn, en route to Vopnafjordur, Iceland, and expected to arrive there on March 16th. She's a general cargo ship built in 2000, currently sailing under the flag of Cyprus.

The Fri Porsgrunn is one of a fleet of cargo vessels, all with good names like Fri Ocean, Fri Tide and Fri Wave, which are part of the Norwegian Kopervik Group. 

We used to see their ships regularly in the Sound of Mull off Kilchoan: this is the Fri Porsgrunn passing up the Sound in October 2013.

Also in the bay was one of the Golspie skiffs, accompanied by a raft of eider. Weather and crew permitting, one of the skiffs is at sea every Sunday.

We were able to enjoy some further wildlife along the beach, including a curlew, a small flock of oystercatchers, and....

...some rather sleepy redshanks.