Scarf Goe north cave

Sea Cave in the east facing cliff, north of Scrabster at the rear of Scarf Geos.

The 1st Ed 25 in OS map has two passages diverging from a single entrance. Pastmap Aerial shows a single 8 m wide entrance which appears to be subtidal across that width. The north tunnel is shown facing ESE and 42 m long. The south tunnel faces E by S and 50 m long.

by land - it may be possible to see all or part of the entrance from nearby cliffs.

Links and Resources:

1st Ed OS 25 in Caithness V.3 shows this cave system just to the left (W) of Scarf Goes.
OS Namebook Caithness vol 11, parish of Thurso p 44 has: Scarf Goes - "This name applies to two caves, and is situated at the end of a small creek, it takes its name from a bird called in this country the Scarf, (Cormorant)". It is clear from this map that the entrances are close together. Pastmap Aerial shows one fairly wide entrance - so the divergence is probably inside. 'Scarf' means 'shag' (Phalacrocorax aristotelis) rather than 'cormorant'. The latter is larger and nests in estuaries (reeds) while shags are strictly sea birds and next on stack and cliff ledges and also inside sea-caves. 'Scarf' is clearly related to Old Norse 'scarfr'; from which the Gaelic name 'sgarbh' (skarav) is also derived.
Pastmap Aerial showing location of cave entrances between Rae Berry and Scarf Goes.

This entry was last updated: 2025-12-11 16:49:40

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NGR:	ND 10827 71393
WGS84:	58.62126, -3.53705
Length:	92 m
Vert. Range:	Not recorded
Altitude:	-1 m
Geology:	Not recorded
Tags:	Cave, SeaCave
Registry:	main

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