1 EAGLETON NOTES: Inverness at Night

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Tuesday 28 February 2017

Inverness at Night

When I was in Inverness a few weeks ago with my son Gaz we stayed at the Glenmorriston Hotel on the bank of the River Ness. I used to stay there years ago when it was far less "upmarket" than it is now. There were no Singapore Sling cocktails available 'back in those days'. After an excellent dinner Gaz and I decided to take advantage of the very cold, crisp late evening air and go for a walk along the river or, to be more accurate, along one bank and back along the other.

The view from my bedroom window
Looking back towards the hotel (not in view) and the Castle. The old Highland and Islands Development Board offices between the camera and the Castle are now luxury apartments
The road bridge from the town centre towards Loch Ness and Fort William
There are a lot of churches on the river's banks
One of several footbridges
Just a closer view
Just a wider view

29 comments:

  1. Beautiful pictures! Do you use special equipment for night shots?
    Is the one bridge illuminated in rainbow colours all year round, or was it for a special occasion?

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    1. Meike I just use my Pentax k-3 DSLR. The secret is using the correct colour temperature settings. I'm told that the bridge is illuminated in different colours depending which week is celebrated: purple for epilepsy week for example. I'm not sure what was being celebrated when we were there - life in general perhaps.

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  2. Isn't it great how with modern cameras and i-phones we can easily take effective night time pictures? When I was a boy my family stayed at the Inverness Municipal Campsite on three or four occasions and I returned there when I was a student in the seventies. The air always seemed so fresh up in Inverness. It was so different from exotic Yorkshire.

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    1. Like you YP I first went to Inverness as a boy but I don't think we stayed there. We were towing a caravan and tended to chose more rural locations where we could. It is always fresh in the Scottish Highlands.

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  3. Fabulous night photos...! We visited Loch Ness and Inverness on one of our family holidays in Britan back in 1971 but I don't really remember the city or where we stayed. In my album I only have photos of the castle and the lake. I suspect the city was not quite as colourfully illuminated back then!

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    1. Monica the colourful illumination of Inverness is quite recent although the Castle has been lit for many years. The city only had a population of 35,000 in 1971 and now it's nearly 50,000.

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  4. I'd say you had a great walk in a beautiful city.

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  5. A splendid bridge and some fine architecture there. For some reason it looks very, very cold to me. I don't really know why. Maybe it's just the word "Inverness" which makes me feel cold! :)

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    1. Jenny it looks very cold because it was very very cold. Living in the generally balmy West of Scotland I find the East side of the country quite Baltic. On the other hand it tends to be less windy.

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  6. Great photos! Call me old-fashioned, but I don't like the bridge lighting. I know it's for a cause, and all, but still - I prefer just the bridge. It's all the rage to be lighting up buildings and bridges lately, but it leaves me cold. Give me historic architecture and romantic rivers, and nothing more is needed for a great view.

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    1. During the day I agree with you Mrs S but at night I have to say that in an urban situation I rather liked it. For romance I would have gone further upstream!!

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    2. The salmon would agree with you... *wink*

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  7. Lovely! This is one of the places an ancestor of mine originated from - would love to visit there.

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    1. Well, Amy, I hope that you achieve your wish. The city is attractive but the surrounding Scottish Highlands are spectacular.

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  8. Lovely shots. Great to get some night views. When Nat and I were there about 12 years ago, we stayed in the youth hostel some way out of town so we didn't see it at night, being all tucked up in our bunks by then! We didn't see the monster either, tho' we looked and looked ...

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    1. I can't believe that it's 12 years ago Kate. I keep forgetting how long we have known each other.

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  9. Wow!! Stunning photos Graham. Cities do look so beautiful with all night lights.

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  10. One of the things I love about the UK is the historical architecture! As you probably know, I love cities at night.

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    1. Some of your city night photos across the river are amazing Liz.

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  11. When I stayed with my Uncle in Inverness in about 1950 (I was just a boy then) we used to cross the river by a walkway bridge, known then as the "Shaky Bridge". Does this structure still exist and does it still shake. We could get it to tremor by jumping up and down.

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    1. Yes Duncan the bridge is still there (not far from the hotel I was staying in and despite everyone jumping up and down on it) and it still shakes. I have a feeling that it was refurbished several decades ago though.

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  12. Wonderful photos GB. I've never had much success with night photography.
    May I ask what camera you used to take them?

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    1. I see you've already answered this in replying to Meike. I was sure I'd read through all the comments and then I reread them and there was your reply right at the top. It's amazing what having children does to your brain!

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    2. Helen, children and age (mine not yours!).

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  13. Love these nighttime images. Such a beautiful town.

    Mersad
    Mersad Donko Photography

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    1. Thanks Mersad. It is. However it doesn't have the beauty and allure of most of the old town of which you post.

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  14. Lovely night photos GB....the true essence of the surroundings come through as if I were there.

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