Loch Vaa

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Loch Vaa
Loch Vaa - geograph.org.uk - 1173541.jpg
View from the bank
Scotland relief location map.jpg
Red pog.svg
Loch Vaa
United Kingdom relief location map.jpg
Red pog.svg
Loch Vaa
LocationScotland, United Kingdom
Coordinates 57°14′06″N3°48′03″W / 57.23500°N 3.80083°W / 57.23500; -3.80083 Coordinates: 57°14′06″N3°48′03″W / 57.23500°N 3.80083°W / 57.23500; -3.80083
Type Freshwater loch
Primary inflows Spring-fed
Basin  countriesScotland
Surface area39 acres (16 ha)

Loch Vaa is a body of water in Highland, Scotland. It is located between Boat of Garten and Aviemore in the Cairngorms National Park. It is used for fishing, swimming and boating and its wooden boathouse is a popular location for tourists and photographers. The loch also contains the remains of a historic crannog structure. In 2018-19 the loch was subject to a dramatic drop in water levels over a dry winter period and was not restored to usual levels until prolonged rainfall in July 2019.

Contents

Description

Loch Vaa is a 39-acre (16 ha) spring-fed freshwater loch which is said to have "gin clear" waters. [1] [2] [3] The loch is owned by a local estate but a number of businesses have been granted rights for fishing, swimming and boating activities. [3] The fishery is managed and the lake is stocked with brown and rainbow trout; it is also frequented by wild grebe. [1] The loch's wooden boathouse, which is used for fishing, is surrounded by water and is a popular destination for tourists and photographers. [1]

The loch contains the remains of a crannog, a historic fortified structure constructed on an artificial island. [4] Birch timber recovered from the Loch Vaa crannog dates it to the 13th century, though the structure may be even older - dating back to the time of the Picts or earlier Iron Age peoples. [5]

2018/2019 water loss

Between September 2018 and May 2019 the loch suffered a dramatic drop in water levels. [1] Over this period some 35,000,000 imperial gallons (160,000,000 litres) of water were lost, causing the water level to fall by 1.4 metres (4.6 feet). [1] By mid-September boats were unable to use the famous boathouse, which soon became accessible by dry land; the owner even considered relocating the structure. [1] [3] By May 2019 the loch fell to its lowest level in 750 years and archaeological experts were called in to check the historic crannog remains. [5] [4] The crannog was found to have been undamaged by the loss of water, which is key to prevent the remains from deteriorating, but came close with the water level just centimetres above the surviving timbers. [5]

Local councillor Bill Lobban called for a full investigation into the water level issues by public bodies. [2] The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) claimed that the cause was the comparatively dry winter of 2018/19 which had led to low groundwater levels in the area. [1] [3] There was some suspicion directed at Scottish Water which had recently drilled a new borehole at Aviemore. However they claimed that their borehole was located 3 miles (4.8 km) upstream and that the local glacial geology isolated the loch from the abstraction site. [1] Water levels rose significantly by early July 2019 following 37 days of rain and were at a 20-year high by 2020. [4] [6]

Related Research Articles

Crannog Prehistoric lake dwelling

A crannog is typically a partially or entirely artificial island, usually built in lakes and estuarine waters of Scotland, Wales, and Ireland. Unlike the prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps, which were built on the shores and not inundated until later, crannogs were built in the water, thus forming artificial islands.

Highland (council area) 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.

Loch Lomond Lake in Scotland

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Grantown-on-Spey Human settlement in Scotland

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Loch Rannoch Freshwater loch in Perth and Kinross, Scotland

Loch Rannoch is a freshwater loch in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It is over 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) long in a west–east direction with an average width of about 1.2 kilometres (0.75 mi), and is deepest at its eastern end, reaching a depth of 130 metres (440 ft). The River Tummel begins at its eastern end, where the small village of Kinloch Rannoch can be found, whilst the wild expanse of Rannoch Moor extends to the west of the loch. The area surrounding Loch Rannoch, along with Rannoch Moor itself, was formerly part of the native Caledonian Forest that stretched across much of Northern Scotland. Native forest is now largely absent from much of the area, due partly to logging, and partly to the climate becoming wetter, and Loch Rannoch is now largely surrounded by commercial forestry and open hillsides, although a small area remains at the Black Wood of Rannoch on the southern shore of the loch.

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Loch Shiel Freshwater loch in Scotland

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Loch Morlich

Loch Morlich is a freshwater loch in the Badenoch and Strathspey area of Highland, Scotland near Aviemore. The loch is home to a watersports centre with kayaking, sailing and windsurfing among the activities available. There is also a yacht club and cycling routes around the loch. The loch is at the foot of the Cairngorm mountains, just a few miles from Aviemore. As seen on Game of Thrones Season 5.

Loch Venachar A lake in Stirlingshire, Scotland

Loch Venachar is a freshwater loch in Stirling district, Scotland.

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Loch Tummel is a long, narrow loch, seven kilometres northwest of Pitlochry in the council area of Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It is fed and drained by the River Tummel, which flows into the River Tay about 13 km (8 mi) south-east of the Clunie Dam at the loch's eastern end.

Lochspouts

Lochspouts Loch or Lochspouts was situated in a hollow, surrounded by hilly ground on three sides and bounded by a narrow trap dyke to the north. The land was once held by the Ferguson family of Kilkerran and lies in the Parish of Kirkoswald, South Ayrshire, Scotland. The loch became a reservoir in the 19th century.

Carlingwark Loch A lake in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland

Carlingwark Loch is a small freshwater loch in the historical county of Kirkcudbrightshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland lying just south of Castle Douglas and is roughly rectangular in shape, trending nearly north and south. The name of the loch comes from the Scots Gaelic word Caer meaning fort and wark the old Scots language word for work. There are four artificial islets in the loch showing evidence of fortification and settlement, Ash Island is thought to be a crannog. Several archaeological finds have been retrieved from the loch including a bronze cauldron, sword and pan and two dugout canoes.

Loch Calder

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The Loch Arthur logboat or dugout canoe was found in 1874 when the water level was low on the south bank of the Loch Arthur, near the village of Beeswing, southwest of Dumfries in Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland. The logboat, built of oak, is about 13.7 meters long and up to 1.5 meters wide. On the opposite side of the 300 to 400 meter wide lake was a crannóg .

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Mystery of the disappearing loch". BBC News. 3 May 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  2. 1 2 Henderson, Michelle (4 May 2019). "Calls for investigation into the mystery of the disappearing Highland loch". Press and Journal. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Barrie, Josh (3 May 2019). "Mystery as picturesque fishing loch loses millions of gallons of water". I News. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  4. 1 2 3 "Water level rises at mysteriously-draining loch". BBC News. 2 July 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  5. 1 2 3 "Loch's mysterious drop to '750-year low level'". BBC News. 17 October 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  6. "Mystery 'empty loch' is now fullest in 20 years". BBC News. 27 April 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2020.