Geography

Caithness itself is an unusual piece of geography. Scotland is split into highland (mountains) and lowland (no-mountains). These are used to refer to the upper and lowerpart of Scotland, respectively. So Glasgow and Edinburgh are considered lowland, while Inverness is considered highland. Caithness is part of the highlands in any map, and is governed be the Highlands and Islands Council, but there are no mountains in Caithness. It is stuck between the two. Thurso is on the same line of latitude (53º) as Moscow.

Scenery

As a result of being in the far north of Scotland, Thurso is surrounded by beautiful scenery. Rolling fields as far as the horizon, no mountains to block the view and the ocean is the meeting place of two tidal forces which produced dramatic wave patterns and colours.

KW14 Postcode

Thurso is plagued with the KW postcode, taken from Kirkwall in Orkney. As a result, many companies that use the postcode, such as insurance firms and couriers, ask you for your postcode, then say: "Ah, you're in the Orkney isles then?" or try to charge for overseas postage.

Weather & Seasons

There is a misconception that Thurso is cold. This is wrong. Thurso is cold to visitors. To the population that live there, it is quite mild.

There is a bad joke about Scotland: "Just like everywhere else, Scotland has four seasons. Unlike anywhere else, you often get them all in the same day." During spring, when the wheather is all confused, this statement is regularly true in Thurso.

Winters can be quite harsh but are equally likely to be mild. The Pentland Firth that flows offshore is fed directly by warm waters from the gulf stream, which moderates the weather quite well. The nearby Orkney islands fare far worse during the winter. From the coastline at Thurso, the island of Hoy can often be seen covered in snow. Given that most of Hoy that is visible from Thurso is sheer cliff-face, this gives an idea of the severity of the weather in Orkney.

Summers are long, sunny and usually warm. Not as warm as the riviera, but Thurso isn't anywhere near the riviera. Due to daylight saving time, the summer days in Thurso last much longer than expected. Sunrise occurs at around 0300 and sets around 2300. On the longest day of the year, the sun never sets. It goes from evening to twilight then straight into morning.

Population

Thurso has a population of around 8,500. The town is split into three main zones. The old town, built around the tidal river and harbour, the new town, built by the UK Atomic Energy Authority to house all the workers brought in to built and work at Dounreay and comprised of easily recognisable buildings, which have a deceptive number of possible internal layouts, and the expanded town, new building developments still going on today that straddle the town on either side.

Education

Thurso has three primary schools; Pennyland, Miller Academy and Mount Pleasant, one high school unimaginatively named Thurso High School and a colllege; the North Highland College, which is part of the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI), the largest distributed university in the UK, in area coverage.

Site of Special Scientific Interest & Nature Reserve

Caithness itself is a haven for scientists. Although it may not look like it, large sections have been designated Sites of Special Scienticfic Interest (SSSI) because of the fossilised fish found there. The Caithness Fossil Group was founded by two local enthusiasts (one a world renowned expert of the local fossil fish species) to promote the SSSIs more. Achanaras quarry in particular contains species of fossil fishes¹ not found anywhere else in the world.

Caithness also has the largest single expanse of bog peatland in the world, at Forsinard. This may not sound like much to boast about, but it is the habitat of many species of animal, bird, plant and insect that are found no-where else. It is run and maintained by the RSPB.

As a result, Thurso is a natural base camp for them, being close to the centre (horizontally at least) of Caithness, but still having all the amenities they would need, like hotels, shops, camp sites and entertainment.

Accomodation & Tourism

Thurso has many hotels, including;

• The Royal
• The Park
• The Pentland
• The (New) Weigh Inn*
• The Central
• The St. Claire
• Ormlie House Hotel
• The Station Hotel

There are also may B&Bs in the area and a camp and caravan site, which also has several huge permanent caravans for hire during the summer. The camp site is very popular, especially with European travellers, both coach party and individual families.

The proximity to John o'Groats also makes Thurso a tourism haven. Many tourists comment on the quality of the air and friendliness of the inhabitants.

Thurso beach in winter is a favourite for surfers, the world championships being held there a few years ago. The beach itself is unusual. At Thurso it is a sandy cove, but as you walk westward towards Scrabster, it becomes a pebble, and then a boulder beach. Just below the old second world war pillbox are the remains of anti-tank defences installed, and beyond those can be seen an inactive geological fault line, but only at low tide.

The River Thurso has a significant salmon population and is popular amoung anglers. A licence is required for anyone wanting to take the fish away, but anyone can fish for fun, as long as they put the fish back. An unfortunate battle against a family of seals took place in the summer of 2002, which culminated in an inflatable orca (killer whale) being towed up the river. Sadly the young seals had never seen one before and thus weren't frightened by it. If fact, they punctured and sank it.

Thurso has it's own castle, Thurso Castle, owned by Lord Thurso, the local MP (who also owns the river), but it is in a bad state of repair and has been boarded up with the usual "Danger! Unstable building" signs for many years. It is, or was, a three story square tower, than many local artists continue to draw and paint. Another local ruin is St. Peters Kirk in the old town. It's ruins are dominated by the remains of one wall with an segmented arch window.

The nearby harbour of Scrabster is the main port for Orkney, the other being near John o'Groats. The ferry travels to Orkney three times a day, and due to the company only just winning the contract, a new dog-leg pier is being constructed there. As with all major construction jobs in Caithness, it is almost nine months behind schedule and still not finished.

Entertainment

Thurso boasts;

• A two screen cinema.
• A six lane bowling alley.
• A nightclub.
• A skateboard park.
• A swimming pool.
• An 18 hole golf course (said to be quite challenging).
• A putting green.
• Tennis courts.
• Many excellent public houses.
• A boating pond.

It may not compete with the lights of the big city, but Thurso is not a big city. In comparison to the nearest city, Inverness, the only other type of entertainment available is ice skating.

Shopping

Thurso has many shops, The CO-OP, Safeway and Lidl stores are the main supermarkets, but there are many smaller shops. A Woolworths still manages to dominate the short pedestrian precenct, despite being at the far end of it. The usual electrical stores, several banks (Royal Bank of Scotland, Bank of Scotland, Clydesdale and Lloyds TSB) and various miscellaneous shops, including an occult shop and a strange shop that sells anything from briefcases to beds to telescopes.

Technology Centre

Thurso's business park is home to a Manpower customer contact centre for BT, which handles calls for BT residential faults, internet helpdesk, internet billing, and BT's internal IT helpdesk. The site also homes a high-tech battery factory, making ultra light and thin batteries for military and civilian use. These companies came to Thurso because of it's proximity to the Dounreay nuclear power plant, which has ensured a local powerbase of professional experts in technical fields.

More information is available at Caithness.org.