Conon Bridge ( gd, Drochaid Sguideil, ) is a small village in the

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

region of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. The current Gaelic name is likely a neologism: the bridge was not built until the early 19th century and some early gravestones show the name sgudal or scuddle. One suggested source is the Old Norse "sku dal", ''valley of the fine views''. Situated near the market town of

Dingwall Dingwall ( sco, Dingwal, gd, Inbhir Pheofharain ) is a town and a royal burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It has a population of 5,491. It was an east-coast harbour that now lies inland. Dingwall Castle was once the biggest cast ...

, on the southern bank of the

River Conon The River Conon ( gd, Conann) is a river in the Highlands of Scotland. It begins at Loch Luichart, and flows in a south-easterly direction to be joined by the River Meig at Scatwell before passing through Loch Achonachie. It is joined by the B ...

, in Ross-shire, it is at the western end of the

Cromarty Firth The Cromarty Firth (; gd, Caolas Chrombaidh ; literally "kyles /nowiki>straits.html"_;"title="strait.html"_;"title="/nowiki>strait">/nowiki>straits">strait.html"_;"title="/nowiki>strait">/nowiki>straitsof_Cromarty.html" ;"title="strait">/no ...

. The village of

Maryburgh Maryburgh ( gd, Baile Màiri) is a village in the Highland council area of Scotland, south of Dingwall. It is situated on the northern bank of the River Conon. The village of Conon Bridge Conon Bridge ( gd, Drochaid Sguideil, ) is a small v ...

is on the other side of the river. Conon Bridge has a

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

on the line between

(the nearest town) and

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...

(the nearest city), which re-opened on 8 February 2013. This had been proposed as a candidate for reopening after the success of doing so with nearby

Beauly railway station , symbol_location = gb , symbol = rail , image = Beauly A862.jpg , caption = The short platform at Beauly, looking southeast , borough = Beauly, Highland , country = Scotl ...

. In September 2012 the

Minister for Housing and Transport The Minister for Transport is a member of the Scottish Government who reports to the Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero, Energy and Transport. As a Junior Minister the post holder is not a member of the Scottish Government Cabinet. Overview The ...

Keith Brown confirmed it would reopen by February 2013 to offer an alternative to commuters during resurfacing work on the

Kessock Bridge The Kessock Bridge ( gd, Drochaid Cheasaig) carries the A9 road (Great Britain), A9 trunk road across the Beauly Firth at Inverness, Scotland. Description The Kessock Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge across the Beauly Firth, an inlet of the Mor ...

from February to June 2013. Amenities at present are a small fraction of what they once were, hosting a Spar shop, Post Office, two hairdressing salons, a bar and separate hotel. It also has its own primary school, whose pupils then go on to

Dingwall Academy Dingwall Academy is the largest secondary school in the Highlands of Scotland, with an enrolment of 1048 pupils as of August 2018. The Academy is situated in the centre of Dingwall and brings in pupils from Conon Bridge, Maryburgh, Muir of Ord, ...

. There is also a recently opened pharmacy and a Co-op store opened in 2017. The only church situated within the village itself is the Ferintosh Parish Church, a growing

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...

congregation. Private housing in the village is complemented by council estates. Future plans for the village include more exclusive, private housing schemes, a new primary school, a doctors' surgery and more shopping facilities for residents. A new small shopping complex opened up on the east side of the village in early 2017.{{cite web , last1=Ross , first1=Callum , title=Plans unveiled for £1.5million retail scheme in Highland village , url=https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/highlands/1042240/plans-unveiled-for-1-5million-retail-scheme-at-conon-bridge/ , website=Press and Journal , publisher=Press and Journal , accessdate=13 April 2019

Footnotes

External links

* Conon Bridge Community Website http://www.cononbridge.org.uk/index.asp * Ferintosh Church of Scotland https://ferintoshparishchurch.org.uk/ Populated places on the Black Isle