I mentioned in this post that our journey up to and back down from Elgin last April turned out to be a peregrination through the heartland of the Highland League.

It meant I have now visited nearly all of the towns which have hosted past or present Highland League clubs during my lifetime.

The first of these would have been Inverness (home to Caledonian FC,* Clachnacuddin and Inverness Thistle*.) I have walked past Caledonian’s former Telford Street Park ground and been to a game at Clachnacuddin’s Grant Street Park but never saw Thistle’s ground, Kingsmills. I think I may have visited Dingwall (Ross County) around the same time. After that – or possibly before – it would have been Brechin (many times now) to see The Sons of the Rock play Brechin City at Glebe Park. Next up was probably Fort William. Another trip to Inverness saw us take in Nairn (Nairn County) and Forres (Forres Mechanics.)

I don’t think I went to Aberdeen (Banks O’ Dee, Cove Rangers,) until well after those trips.

Then on our first sojourn up to Orkney we passed through Brora (Brora Rangers) and Wick (Wick Academy.) A year or so later a journey up to Aberdeenshire saw us in Inverurie (Inverurie Loco Works,) Huntly and Turriff (Turriff United.) In 2019 we went to Peterhead and on to Fraserburgh. The year after that on another trip to Peterhead we visited Pitmedden (Formartine United.)

And so to last April’s journey, passing through Grantown-on-Spey (Strathspey Thistle) and Rothes before reaching Elgin (Elgin City) with a side trip to Lossiemouth. Then finally, on the way back home, Keith.

So, out of all the towns/cities to host clubs in the Highland League during my lifetime I have only Buckie (Buckie Thistle) and Banff (Deveronvale) to visit.

*The present SPFL club whose name contains these two descriptors was formed when Caledonian and Inverness Thistle merged in 1994 to ensure entry into the then SFL. That merged team, Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC, have never played in the Highland League.

I wasn’t expecting to find Art Deco in Lossiemouth but then again a lot of 1920s/30s cinemas were newly built and in the deco style.

This is the former Regal Cinema, which opened in 1939. I found it in Queen Street. It’s now a Co-op:-

Frontage. Rule of three in columns to front, nice curved detail near roofline, flagpole. Glazing totally knackered, though:-

Closer view:-

From left:-

Lossiemouth is a town in Moray, situated where the River Lossie enters the Moray Firth. It’s about six miles north of Elgin.

It has an unusual wall mounted Memorial, hard by the River Lossie just before it reaches the Moray Firth. On Pitgaveny Street.

Dedications and names:-

The Memorial is surmounted by a figure of Victory and Peace:-

Spiney Palace lies a few miles north of Elgin and is a similar distance south of Lossiemouth.

View from entrance pathway. As is quitecommen when wev visit places it was swathed in scaffolding:-

Information board:-

Artist’s impression of the palace in its heyday:-

View of little tower:-

Part of Great Hall looking towards water tower:-

East gate and walls:-

Great Hall and well:-

Tower:-

(and scaffolding):-