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Up to 15 pilot whales have got into difficulty in shallow water with a falling tide at Kyle of Durness, on the remote north Highland coast.
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) said the whales were believed to be from a pod of as many as 60.
A Royal Navy bomb disposal team training in the area has offered its help in any rescue effort.
British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) and Scottish SPCA inspectors were heading for the scene.
The whales may have been hunting prey or seeking a place to rest
A Highland Council countryside ranger and nine coastguard volunteers have been monitoring the situation.
The council ranger said that at low tide only a narrow channel of sea remained.
Kyle of Durness opens out into Balnakeil Bay.
Charlie Phillips, a Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS) field officer, said the area was remote and it would take rescuers sometime to reach the scene.
Mr Phillips told the BBC News Scotland website: "It is going to be tricky.
"It is a remote and difficult place to get to."
Mr Phillips added: "The whales may have come in from the Pentland Firth, following prey or trying to find somewhere to rest."
He said a young female pilot whale was found at Scourie, in Sutherland, a few weeks ago.
In May, two pilot whales were found dead in a Hebridean loch after experts feared more than 60 of the animals had been at risk of becoming beached.
The pod had got into difficulty in Loch Carnan in South Uist.
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) said the whales were believed to be from a pod of as many as 60.
A Royal Navy bomb disposal team training in the area has offered its help in any rescue effort.
British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) and Scottish SPCA inspectors were heading for the scene.
The whales may have been hunting prey or seeking a place to rest
A Highland Council countryside ranger and nine coastguard volunteers have been monitoring the situation.
The council ranger said that at low tide only a narrow channel of sea remained.
Kyle of Durness opens out into Balnakeil Bay.
Charlie Phillips, a Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS) field officer, said the area was remote and it would take rescuers sometime to reach the scene.
Mr Phillips told the BBC News Scotland website: "It is going to be tricky.
"It is a remote and difficult place to get to."
Mr Phillips added: "The whales may have come in from the Pentland Firth, following prey or trying to find somewhere to rest."
He said a young female pilot whale was found at Scourie, in Sutherland, a few weeks ago.
In May, two pilot whales were found dead in a Hebridean loch after experts feared more than 60 of the animals had been at risk of becoming beached.
The pod had got into difficulty in Loch Carnan in South Uist.
