Loch Morar
Encyclopedia
Loch Morar is a freshwater loch
in Morar
, Lochaber
, Highland
, Scotland
. It is the fifth-largest loch in Scotland, with a surface area of 26.7 km² (10.3 sq mi) and the deepest freshwater body in the British Isles
, with a maximum depth of 1017 ft (310 m).
Loch Morar is of glacial
origin with very steep sides and a length of 19 km (11.8 mi). It contains five sizeable islands.
The only road along the loch extends no more than four miles (6 km) along the north shore. Both sides of the loch were inhabited along their length as late as the early 12th century. Emigration and the introduction of sheep farming and sporting estates in place of the traditional cattle farming, led to the abandoment of all settlements on the south shore and of those on the north-east of Bracorina. Kinlochmorar, at the head of the loch, was last inhabited around 1920 and Swordland Lodge, at the midway point on the north shore and level with the deepest part of the loch, has been no more than a summer home since 1969.
In common with Loch Ness
, occasional reports of large unidentified creatures in the loch's waters are made. The monster has been dubbed Morag
by locals.
Loch Morar was once famous for its prolific salmon and sea trout runs, but in common with most other freshwater systems in north-west Scotland these fish have been largely eradicated, and in many cases unique genotypes are now extinct, due to biological pollution in the form of parasitic lice from sea cage salmon farms.
The Ministry of Supply
Department of Atomic Energy built a station at Loch Morar in 1947.
Loch
Loch is the Irish and Scottish Gaelic word for a lake or a sea inlet. It has been anglicised as lough, although this is pronounced the same way as loch. Some lochs could also be called a firth, fjord, estuary, strait or bay...
in Morar
Morar
Morar is a small village on the west coast of Scotland, south of Mallaig. The name Morar is also applied to the wider district around the village....
, Lochaber
Lochaber
District of Lochaber 1975 to 1996Highland council area shown as one of the council areas of ScotlandLochaber is one of the 16 ward management areas of the Highland Council of Scotland and one of eight former local government districts of the two-tier Highland region...
, Highland
Highland (council area)
Highland is a council area in the Scottish Highlands and is the largest local government area in both Scotland and the United Kingdom as a whole. It shares borders with the council areas of Moray, Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross, and Argyll and Bute. Their councils, and those of Angus and...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. It is the fifth-largest loch in Scotland, with a surface area of 26.7 km² (10.3 sq mi) and the deepest freshwater body in the British Isles
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
, with a maximum depth of 1017 ft (310 m).
Loch Morar is of glacial
Glacier
A glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...
origin with very steep sides and a length of 19 km (11.8 mi). It contains five sizeable islands.
The only road along the loch extends no more than four miles (6 km) along the north shore. Both sides of the loch were inhabited along their length as late as the early 12th century. Emigration and the introduction of sheep farming and sporting estates in place of the traditional cattle farming, led to the abandoment of all settlements on the south shore and of those on the north-east of Bracorina. Kinlochmorar, at the head of the loch, was last inhabited around 1920 and Swordland Lodge, at the midway point on the north shore and level with the deepest part of the loch, has been no more than a summer home since 1969.
In common with Loch Ness
Loch Ness
Loch Ness is a large, deep, freshwater loch in the Scottish Highlands extending for approximately southwest of Inverness. Its surface is above sea level. Loch Ness is best known for the alleged sightings of the cryptozoological Loch Ness Monster, also known affectionately as "Nessie"...
, occasional reports of large unidentified creatures in the loch's waters are made. The monster has been dubbed Morag
Morag (loch monster)
Morag or Mòrag is a loch monster reported to live in Loch Morar, Scotland. After Nessie, it is among the best known of Scotland's legendary monsters....
by locals.
Loch Morar was once famous for its prolific salmon and sea trout runs, but in common with most other freshwater systems in north-west Scotland these fish have been largely eradicated, and in many cases unique genotypes are now extinct, due to biological pollution in the form of parasitic lice from sea cage salmon farms.
The Ministry of Supply
Ministry of Supply
The Ministry of Supply was a department of the UK Government formed in 1939 to co-ordinate the supply of equipment to all three British armed forces, headed by the Minister of Supply. There was, however, a separate ministry responsible for aircraft production and the Admiralty retained...
Department of Atomic Energy built a station at Loch Morar in 1947.