Golspie
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Golspie is a coastal village in Sutherland, Highland, Scotland. comprising some 1600 souls. It is located picturesquely on the shores of the Moray Firth under the shadow of Ben Bhraggie (394m).
Golspie boasts award winning beaches to the north and south of the tidal pier, where families can have safe bathing, there is a public swimming pool in the centre of the village for those who prefer warmer water. The excellent golf course provides a mix of links, parkland and heath and there are central facilities for tennis and bowling, football and playing fields for the young. Around Golspie there are attractive walks which offer panoramic views, opportunities for bird watching and botany study, fossil-hunting and the magical enchantment of the Big Burn gorges and waterfalls. There is Loch and sea angling, as well as sailing and yachting in the bay.
Centred around Loch Fleet, three miles south of Golspie, is a National Nature Reserve where in season waders and wildfowl can be easily viewed, along with seals basking on the sandbanks. Osprey and terns frequent the loch in summer, along with thousands of locally-born swallows. Some rare wild flowers and plants can be seen on walks in the Balblair Wood nearby.
The village boasts a Choral Group, Rotary Club, dancing classes of many and varied styles, plus at the start of August Golspie Gala Week. Among the 100 events staged throughout eight days are a car-banger derby, a fancy dress parade, a wheelbarrow race and a parade of massed pipe bands as a finale. Golspie Heritage Society has a permanent home in the former Fisherman's Welcome on Station Road. The IT-equipped public library, open for limited periods over four days weekly, is situated in the Community Centre complex adjoining the High School.
The Church of Scotland and the Free Church have well-established congregations, while those of the Roman Catholic and Anglican Church faith worship in nearby Brora.
There are four hotels, several guesthouses and B & Bs, as well as self-catering cottages available all year round to cater for stop-over and holidaying visitors. Dunrobin Castle, the seat of Clan Sutherland, is only a short way outside.
Golspie has a long-standing rivalry with Brora.
