Laggan, Great Glen

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Laggan
Laggan Avenue reflections - geograph.org.uk - 1081923.jpg
Laggan Avenue reflections
Lochaber UK location map.svg
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Laggan
Location within the Lochaber area
OS grid reference NN294971
Council area
Country Scotland
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Postcode district PH
Dialling code 01809
Police Scotland
Fire Scottish
Ambulance Scottish
List of places
UK
Scotland
57°01′59″N4°48′47″W / 57.033°N 4.813°W / 57.033; -4.813 Coordinates: 57°01′59″N4°48′47″W / 57.033°N 4.813°W / 57.033; -4.813

Laggan (Scottish Gaelic : An Lagan) is a small village in the Great Glen, in the Highland region of Scotland. [1] The older, longer Gaelic name is Lagan Achaidh Droma, "hollow at the field of the ridge". [2]

Contents

Geography

Laggan is often considered to be two separate settlements, North Laggan and South Laggan, about one mile apart, both situated between Loch Lochy and Loch Oich. The Caledonian Canal passes by Laggan, linking these two lochs. Laggan Locks, a flight of two locks, connects the canal to Loch Oich.

The main A82 road between Glasgow and Inverness passes through Laggan, crossing the canal at Laggan Swing Bridge.

The Great Glen Way long-distance footpath passes by Laggan, running alongside the canal and following the old railway line.

History

The Battle of the Shirts was fought nearby in July 1544 between the Macdonalds of Rannald and Clan Fraser of Lovat in the Great Glen, overlooking Loch Lochy. [3]

The Invergarry and Fort Augustus Railway once passed by Laggan. This line opened in 1896, with Invergarry railway station situated at North Laggan. The line closed to passengers in 1933, and to freight in 1947.

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Fort Augustus village in Scotland

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River Ness

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Caledonian Canal

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A82 road Major road in Scotland from Glasgow to Inverness

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Great Glen Scottish valley along geological fault line

The Great Glen, also known as Glen Albyn or Glen More, is a glen in Scotland running for 62 miles (100 km) from Inverness on the edge of Moray Firth, in an approximately straight line to Fort William at the head of Loch Linnhe. It follows a geological fault known as the Great Glen Fault, and bisects the Scottish Highlands into the Grampian Mountains to the southeast and the Northwest Highlands to the northwest.

Loch Lochy

Loch Lochy is a large freshwater loch in Lochaber, Highland, Scotland. With a mean depth of 70 m (230 ft), it is the third-deepest loch of Scotland.

Loch Oich

Loch Oich is a freshwater loch in the Highlands of Scotland which forms part of the Caledonian Canal, of which it is the highest point. This narrow loch lies between Loch Ness and Loch Lochy in the Great Glen. It is fed by the River Garry from the west, and feeds the River Oich from its northern end. The Laggan locks separate it from Loch Lochy.

Great Glen Way Long distance trail in Scotland

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Aberchalder Human settlement in Scotland

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Sròn a Choire Ghairbh

Sròn a’ Choire Ghairbh is a Scottish mountain situated on the northern side of Loch Lochy, 13 kilometres north of Spean Bridge in the Highland Council area.

Meall na Teanga

Meall na Teanga is a Scottish mountain located in the Highland council area, 11 km (7 mi) north of Spean Bridge.

Invergarry Human settlement in Scotland

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Ben Tee

Ben Tee is a Scottish mountain situated in the Lochaber area of the Highland council area, some 15 kilometres north of Spean Bridge. It is rated as one of the best of Scotland's smaller mountains with Hamish Brown saying:

Ben Tee is such a shapely cone that it is instantly recognisable from anywhere around the Great Glen or along the Garry. Its isolated situation makes it one of Scotland’s finest summit viewpoints.

National Cycle Route 78 runs from Campbeltown to Inverness. It was officially launched as the Caledonia Way in 2016 as part of the wider redevelopment of Scotland's cycle network. It runs from the Kintyre peninsula to the Great Glen and the route varies from on road to traffic-free forest trails and canal paths.

Gairlochy Human settlement in Scotland

Gairlochy(Scottish Gaelic: Geàrr Lòchaidh) is a clachan, or hamlet, of population approx. 100. It lies on the southern shores of Loch Lochy, a large freshwater loch in the district of Lochaber in the North West Highlands of Scotland. Gairlochy is surrounded by several other small crofting settlements, the largest of which is Achnacarry. Also close by is Highbridge, the site of the first skirmish of the 1745 Jacobite uprising.

Invergarry Railway Station is situated at the southern end of Loch Oich, on the eastern side, and not far from the Laggan swing bridge over the Caledonian canal. It is therefore 2 miles from the village of Invergarry.

River Spean river in the West Highlands of Scotland

The River Spean flows from Loch Laggan in a westerly direction to join the River Lochy at Gairlochy in the Great Glen in the West Highlands of Scotland. Major tributaries of the Spean include the left-bank Abhainn Ghuilbinn and River Treig, the right-bank River Roy and the left-bank river known as The Cour. The river is accompanied by the A86 road for almost its entire length, running from (upper) Loch Laggan west to Spean Bridge. The river is spanned by a bridge carrying the A82 road near its junction with the A86 at Spean Bridge. A minor road bridges the Spean just above the falls at Inverlair. Two further road crossings exist - a private estate road across the short stretch of river between upper Loch Laggan and the Laggan reservoir and a road traversing the top of Laggan Dam. The West Highland Line crosses the river near Tulloch Station and follows its north bank before re-crossing one mile east of Spean Bridge. A branch of the railway formerly continued west beside the river from Spean Bridge, crossing it once again to the west of the village.

The Biggest Little Railway in the World Temporary long distance model railway

The Biggest Little Railway in the World (BLR) was a temporary 71 mile (114 km) 1.25 inches (32 mm) O-gauge model railway from Fort William to the City of Inverness, the two largest settlements in the Scottish Highlands. It has been described as a crackpot project to run a model train the length of the Great Glen Way by an army of madcap enthusiasts, geeks, and engineers in the best spirit of eccentric Britishness.

References

  1. Gittings, Bruce; Munro, David. "Laggan, Highland". The Gazetteer for Scotland. School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh and The Royal Scottish Geographical Society. Retrieved 7 February 2019.
  2. "Place name database - Laggan". Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba . Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  3. Tony Jaques (2007). Dictionary of Battles and Sieges: P-Z. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 937–. ISBN   978-0-313-33539-6.