Firefighters have saved houses in the Fort Augustus area which were threatened by a wildfire.
Five crews were on the scene at Loch Unigan Hill, south of the village, throughout the night and only extinguished the fire by 5.30am this morning – nearly nine hours after the initial callout.
At one stage, the fire came within a 164ft of one property and was also close to a water tank.
Fire chiefs said that easterly winds exacerbated the difficult conditions and were fanning the flames.
The crews – from Fort Augustus, Drumnadrochit, Foyers, Spean Bridge and Cannich – used knapsack sprayers, fire beaters and a hose reel jet to tackle the fire on two fronts.
They remained on scene until after 7am, checking for hot spots.
Fort Augustus Watch Manager Alistair MacKinnon said: “The crews did very well in difficult conditions and managed to keep the fire away from one property, thus providing reassurance to the residents.
“We also had a covering jet on a water tank to protect it from the fire. There was a plantation down one side of the hill about half a mile away, but we managed to get the fire under control and prevent it spreading there.”
The latest incident has prompted further reminders to the public to be be careful to reduce the number of fires this summer.
Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) has attended a number of wildfire incidents in the north this year already and are often assisted by land managers, who provide specialist firefighting equipment (including fogging units and all-terrain vehicles) and pay for helicopter support where appropriate.
SFRS is also working closely with land managers and appealing to tourists and communities to help reduce the number fires in a bid to protect the countryside and its residents.