Hull timbers and ballast mounds preserve at least thirty Zulu sailing drifters from the northeast coast’s great herring fishery.
Quick facts
- Date
- Late 19th to early 20th century vessels; later abandonment
- Architect / designer
- Northeast Scottish boatbuilders and fishing communities
- Type
- Intertidal group of at least 30 Zulu fishing drifters
- Designation
- Scheduled monument (SM13730)
- OS grid reference
- NJ 03307 63710
Architecture, archaeology and continuing use
Fourteen vessels retain visible structural timbers, fittings or fixtures, while sixteen more are indicated by distinctive stone-ballast piles. Intertidal sediments partly bury and protect the surviving hull structures.
Its story
Zulu drifters combined design features for speed and manoeuvrability during the late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century herring boom. Obsolete vessels were abandoned together on the Findhorn Bay shore.
Why it is included
Scheduling recognises the rarity, group value and research potential of a nationally important fishing-fleet graveyard.
What to notice
- Curving hull timbers in the sediment.
- Separate piles of stone ballast.
- How tidal burial changes what can be seen.
Reading the surroundings
Check tides and weather before any shore visit. Do not climb on, move or remove timbers, fittings, ballast or surrounding deposits.
Timeline
- Late 19th century Zulu sailing drifters became central to Scotland’s herring fleet.
- Early 20th century Technological change made many sail-powered vessels obsolete.
- 2020 The Findhorn Bay vessel group received statutory scheduling.
What we know — and what remains uncertain
Not every vessel has been individually identified, and tidal conditions continually alter visibility.
Sources & further reading
- Historic Environment Scotland: Findhorn Bay Fishing Vessel Graveyard, SM13730 — Designation status, mapped location, date, fabric and architectural or archaeological interest.
- Trove designation: SM13730 — Parallel national record identity and archival context.
Location
OS grid reference NJ 03307 63710 · Location confidence: High: the national designation supplies an official mapped National Grid Reference; an additional source confirms the Place relationship, history or current identity. · Select the marker to open its satellite view in Google Maps. On desktop, drag Pegman (the yellow figure) onto a blue road. On mobile, turn on the Street View layer and tap a blue road. Other photo markers may be user-contributed.
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