Inverness, the capital city of the Highlands, hosts its annual Highland Games this Saturday, and offers a programme packed with spectacle, colour and lots of competition.
Held at the city’s Northern Meeting Park, the gates open at 10.30am, with events getting under way at 11am, starting with mascot madness toddlers races, solo piping, Highland dancing and the opening of the traders village and exhibitions.
The official opening and chieftain’s welcome takes place at noon followed by, at 12.15pm, a sight both locals and visitors will want to see – a mass Highland fling.
Heavy, track and field events take place in the afternoon and include caber tossing and the Inverness Stonemason’s Stone Challenge, which will see the strongest competitors attempt to lift an 18 stone boulder over a 5ft-tall bar.
This year’s games also feature special guests the Can-American Pipes and Drums Band, which currently consists of 42 pipers, 15 drummers, four-strong colour party and drum major.
Admission costs £8 for adults, £4 for seniors and teenagers, with under-12s going free. These can be bought from 9am on the day, Saturday, July 19, or from 10.30am at the Northern Meeting Park.
