Loch Leven (Highlands)

Last updated

South side of Loch Leven, looking west. Loch Leven.jpg
South side of Loch Leven, looking west.
Loch Leven on a summer day Scotland Loch Leven bordercropped.jpg
Loch Leven on a summer day

Loch Leven (Scottish Gaelic: Loch Liobhann) [1] is a sea loch located on the west coast of Scotland. It is spelled Loch Lyon in Timothy Pont's map of the area [2] and is pronounced Li' un. The local Gaelic pronunciation is Lee' oon [3]

Map of Loch Leven Scotland Map (Firth of Lorn Detail) Loch Leven.png
Map of Loch Leven

Loch Leven extends 8+34 miles (14.1 km), varying in width between 220 yards (200 m) and just over 1 mile (1.6 km). It opens onto Camus a' Chois at North Ballachulish, part of Loch Linnhe at its western end. There are nine small islands, some rocky and covered with heather and some just smooth green grass, near the western end of the loch.

The village of Glencoe (Scottish Gaelic : A' Chàrnaich) [4] lies on its southern shore. The burial place of the MacDonald clan of Glencoe lies on an island - Eilean Munde, St.Munda's or St Munn's or Saint Fintan Munnu's Island, opposite the village. The island burial place was also shared by the Camerons of Callart, on the north shore of the loch, the Stewarts of Ballachulish and Appin and other local families. [5]

The village of Kinlochleven at the head of the loch was established when the aluminium smelter was built there during the first decade of the twentieth century. It was originally the hamlets of Kinlochmore (Inverness-shire) and Kinlochbeg (Argyll) either side of the River Leven. A road connecting the village to Glencoe and the south was not constructed until 1922: until this date the village could only be reached from the south by boat or on foot. [6] The road on the north of the loch continues on to Fort William (Scottish Gaelic : An Gearasdan Inbhir Lochaidh), [7] and was built in 1927.[ citation needed ]

For many years the Ballachulish Ferry plied the route across the mouth of the loch, providing a key link on the A82 between Glasgow and Fort William. In 1975 the Ballachulish Bridge replaced the ferry. Under the bridge lie the narrows of Caolas Mhic Phàdraig. The settlements either side of this point are North and South Ballachulish - Baile a' Chaolais (the settlement on the narrows). There is a fast tidal stream through the narrows, running at up to seven knots at springs; it is wise, therefore, to time and match any passage through the narrows with the tides. Further up the loch, there are several other narrows - principally Caolas na Con - with significant, but diminishing tidal streams. The Caolas na Con represented a considerable barrier to shipping, restricting the size of vessels that could reach Kinlochleven, however in 1907 the channel was dredged and the silt-bearing Allt Gleann a' Chaolais diverted to allow ships bringing bauxite alumina to reach the smelter at Kinlochleven. [6]

56°41′26″N5°7′6″W / 56.69056°N 5.11833°W / 56.69056; -5.11833

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Highland (council area)</span> Council area of Scotland

Highland is a council area in the Scottish Highlands and is the largest local government area in the United Kingdom. It was the 7th most populous council area in Scotland at the 2011 census. It shares borders with the council areas of Aberdeenshire, Argyll and Bute, Moray and Perth and Kinross. Their councils, and those of Angus and Stirling, also have areas of the Scottish Highlands within their administrative boundaries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glencoe, Highland</span> Village in the Lochaber area of Scotland

Glencoe or Glencoe Village is the main settlement in Glen Coe in the Lochaber area of the Scottish Highlands. It lies at the north-west end of the glen, on the southern bank of the River Coe where it enters Loch Leven.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kinlochleven</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Kinlochleven is a village located in Lochaber, in the Scottish Highlands and lies at the eastern end of Loch Leven. To the north lie the Mamores ridge; to the south lie the mountains flanking Glen Coe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A82 road</span> Major road in Scotland from Glasgow to Inverness

The A82 is a major road in Scotland that runs from Glasgow to Inverness via Fort William. It is one of the principal north-south routes in Scotland and is mostly a trunk road managed by Transport Scotland, who view it as an important link from the Central Belt to the Scottish Highlands and beyond. The road passes close to numerous landmarks, including Loch Lomond, Rannoch Moor, Glen Coe, the Ballachulish Bridge, Ben Nevis, the Commando Memorial, Loch Ness, and Urquhart Castle. Along with the A9 and the A90 it is one of the three major north–south trunk roads connecting the Central Belt to the North.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ross and Cromarty</span> Area in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland

Ross and Cromarty, also referred to as Ross-shire and Cromartyshire, is a variously defined area in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. There is a registration county and a lieutenancy area in current use, the latter of which is 8,019 square kilometres in extent. Historically there has also been a constituency of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, a local government county, a district of the Highland local government region and a management area of the Highland Council. The local government county is now divided between two local government areas: the Highland area and Na h-Eileanan Siar. Ross and Cromarty border Sutherland to the north and Inverness-shire to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Argyll</span> Historic county in Scotland

Argyll, sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ballachulish</span> Village in Lochaber, Highland, Scotland

The village of Ballachulish in Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, is centred on former slate quarries. The name Ballachulish was more correctly applied to the area now called North Ballachulish, to the north of Loch Leven, but was usurped for the quarry villages at East Laroch and West Laroch, either side of the River Laroch, which were actually within Glencoe and South Ballachulish respectively.

Glen Coe is a glen of volcanic origins, in the Highlands of Scotland. It lies in the north of the county of Argyll, close to the border with the historic province of Lochaber, within the modern council area of Highland. Glen Coe is regarded as the home of Scottish mountaineering and is popular with hillwalkers and climbers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beinn a' Bheithir</span> Mountain in the Scottish Highlands

Beinn a' Bheithir is a mountain south of Ballachulish and Loch Leven in the Scottish Highlands. It has two Munro summits: Sgorr Dhearg at 1,024 m (3,360 ft) and Sgorr Dhonuill at 1,001 m (3,284 ft).

Glenachulish is a hamlet and glen which lie close to the village of Ballachulish in the Scottish Highlands.

Chì mi na mòrbheanna is a Scottish Gaelic song that was written in 1856 by Highlander John Cameron, a native of Ballachulish and known locally in the Gaelic fashion as Iain Rob and Iain Òg Ruaidh. He worked in the slate quarries before moving to Glasgow where he was engaged as a ship's broker. He became the Bard of the Glasgow Ossianic Society and also Bard to Clan Cameron. He returned to carry on a merchant's business along with his elder brother and to cultivate a small croft at Taigh a' Phuirt, Glencoe, in his beloved Highlands. Other songs and odes appeared in The Oban Times and in various song books. He was buried in St. Munda's Isle in Loch Leven. Wreaths of oak leaves and ivy covered the bier The song is a longing for home and, with its wistful, calming melody and traditional ballad rhythms, is often used as a lullaby.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ballachulish railway station</span> Railway station in Highland, Scotland, UK

Ballachulish was a railway station at Ballachulish on the southern shore of Loch Leven at East Laroch in Highland. It was the terminus of the Ballachulish branch line that linked to the main line of the Callander and Oban Railway at Connel Ferry.

Stockinish Island is an uninhabited island off Harris, in the Outer Hebrides.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eilean Munde</span>

Eilean Munde is a small uninhabited island in Loch Leven, close to Ballachulish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loch Ness</span> Lake in Scotland, United Kingdom

Loch Ness is a large freshwater loch in the Scottish Highlands extending for approximately 37 kilometres southwest of Inverness. It takes its name from the River Ness, which flows from the northern end. Loch Ness is best known for claimed sightings of the cryptozoological Loch Ness Monster, also known affectionately as "Nessie". It is one of a series of interconnected, murky bodies of water in Scotland; its water visibility is exceptionally low due to a high peat content in the surrounding soil. The southern end connects to Loch Oich by the River Oich and a section of the Caledonian Canal. The northern end connects to Loch Dochfour via the River Ness, which then ultimately leads to the North Sea via the Moray Firth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inverness-shire</span> Historic county in Scotland

Inverness-shire is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Covering much of the Highlands and Outer Hebrides, it is Scotland's largest county, though one of the smallest in population, with 67,733 people or 1.34% of the Scottish population.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ballachulish Bridge</span> Bridge in Ballachulish in Scotland

The Ballachulish Bridge is a bridge in the West Highlands of Scotland.

The history of Scottish Gaelic dictionaries goes back to the early 17th century. The high-point of Gaelic dictionary production was in the first half of the 19th century, as yet unrivalled even by modern developments in the late 20th and early 21st century. The majority of dictionaries published to date have been Gaelic to English dictionaries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tolsta Chaolais</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Tolsta Chaolais is a village on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland. It consists of about forty houses, clustered around Loch a' Bhaile, about 1 mile from the A858 road between Callanish and Carloway. The name has a Norse element, Tolsta, combined with a Gaelic element, Caolas, and means "Farm by the Strait". Tolsta Chaolais is in the parish of Uig, and has a building as a place of worship for all denominations.

References

  1. Map of Alba, Roy Pederson, 26 Glenburn Drive, Inverness (1985)
  2. Pont 13: National Library of Scotland
  3. A Pronouncing Dictionary of Scottish Gaelic by Henry Cyril Dieckhoff, Gairm Publications, 29 Waterloo Street, Glasgow G2 6BZ (1992)
  4. Àinmean-Àite na h-Alba - A82 place-name list; Tron Bhogha-Froise - Sgeulachdan is Bàrdachd, Alasdair MacAonghais, Cànan, Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, An Teanga, Slèite, An t-Eilean Sgitheanach, (1999)
  5. Tombstone Inscriptions on the Burial Isle of St. Munda (Eilean Munde) on Loch Leven recorded by Alexander MacDonald, 2002 and 2003, for the Glencoe Heritage Trust Ltd.
  6. 1 2 Peter Hodgkiss, ed. (1994). The Central Highlands. Scottish Mountaineering Trust. p. 95. ISBN   0-907521-44-4.
  7. Dwelly's Illustrated Gaelic to English Dictionary by Edward Dwelly, Gairm Publications, 29 Waterloo Street, Glasgow G2 6BZ (1988)