Scotland Map (Firth of Clyde Detail) Gare Loch

The Gare Loch or Gareloch ( gd, An Gearr Loch) is an open

sea loch ''Loch'' () is the Scottish Gaelic, Scots and Irish word for a lake or sea inlet. It is cognate with the Manx lough, Cornish logh, and one of the Welsh words for lake, llwch. In English English and Hiberno-English, the anglicised sp ...

Argyll and Bute Argyll and Bute ( sco, Argyll an Buit; gd, Earra-Ghàidheal agus Bòd, ) is one of 32 unitary authority council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area. The current lord-lieutenant for Argyll and Bute is Jane Margaret MacLeod (14 July 2020) ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

and bears a similar name to the village of

Gairloch Gairloch ( ; gd, Geàrrloch , meaning "Short Loch") is a village, civil parish and community on the shores of Loch Gairloch in Wester Ross, in the North-West Highlands of Scotland. A tourist destination in the summer months, Gairloch has a go ...

in the north west Highlands. The loch is well used for

recreational boating Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or pleasu ...

water sports Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a s ...

and

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from fish stocking, stocked bodies of water such as fish pond, ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. ...

Harbour A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is ...

and

grey seal The grey seal (''Halichoerus grypus'') is found on both shores of the North Atlantic Ocean. In Latin Halichoerus grypus means "hook-nosed sea pig". It is a large seal of the family Phocidae, which are commonly referred to as "true seals" o ...

s are often seen in the Gare Loch along with pods of

porpoise Porpoises are a group of fully aquatic marine mammals, all of which are classified under the family Phocoenidae, parvorder Odontoceti (toothed whales). Although similar in appearance to dolphins, they are more closely related to narwhals a ...

. Bottle Nose whales were photographed in September 2020. The loch also has been used since the early 20th century for naval training and as a base for the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

's submarine based

nuclear weapon A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...

s system.

Geography

aligned north–south, Gare Loch is long with an average width of . At its southern end it opens into the

Firth of Clyde The Firth of Clyde is the mouth of the River Clyde. It is located on the west coast of Scotland and constitutes the deepest coastal waters in the British Isles (it is 164 metres deep at its deepest). The firth is sheltered from the Atlantic ...

through the

Rhu Rhu (; gd, An Rubha ) is a village and historic parish on the east shore of the Gare Loch in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The traditional spelling of its name was ''Row'', but it was changed in the 1920s so that outsiders would pronounce it cor ...

narrows. The village of Rosneath lies on the western shore just north of Rosneath Point and gives the name Rosneath Peninsula to the whole body of land separating the Gare Loch from

Loch Long Loch Long is a body of water in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The Sea Loch extends from the Firth of Clyde at its southwestern end. It measures approximately in length, with a width of between . The loch also has an arm, Loch Goil, on its wes ...

to the west. The town of

Helensburgh Helensburgh (; gd, Baile Eilidh) is an affluent coastal town on the north side of the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, situated at the mouth of the Gareloch. Historically in Dunbartonshire, it became part of Argyll and Bute following local gove ...

lies on the eastern shore and is the largest settlement on the banks of the loch. Other towns and villages next to the loch include

Garelochhead Garelochhead ( sco, Garelochheid,
gd, Ceann a' Gheàr ...

, Shandon, Argyll, Clynder and Rosneath.

Recreational and shipping use

At the north end of the loch the substantial village of

Garelochhead Garelochhead ( sco, Garelochheid,
gd, Ceann a' Gheàr ...

includes adventure holiday facilities and has a station on the

West Highland Line The West Highland Line ( gd, Rathad Iarainn nan Eilean - "Iron Road to the Isles") is a railway line linking the ports of Mallaig and Oban in the Scottish Highlands to Glasgow in Central Scotland. The line was voted the top rail journey in the ...

. The Gare Loch offers good conditions for

sightseeing Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism m ...

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' ( land yacht) over a chose ...

and sea

angling Angling is a fishing technique that uses a fish hook or "angle" (from Old English ''angol'') attached to a fishing line to tether individual fish in the mouth. The fishing line is usually manipulated via a fishing rod, although rodless techni ...

. The Greek sugar boat was heading for the sheltered waters of the Loch but now lies wrecked in the Clyde.

Naval history

The base was used by the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...

dating back to the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. On 29 January 1917 the steam-powered submarine sank in the loch during sea-trials. The submarine was carrying 80 passengers, made up of naval personnel as well as shipbuilders, when seawater entered the engine room causing flooding which killed 31. The remaining 48 men aboard were rescued in an effort which took over 57 hours. The submarine was later salvaged and re-entered service as HMS ''K22''. As a result of sinking of ''K13'', no other Royal Navy vessel has been named using the number 13. However it was during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

that the loch became the site of a major naval base as its depth made it suitable to accommodate a large variety of naval craft. The loch was widely used by the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

military forces, alongside operations on nearby

Holy Loch The Holy Loch ( gd, An Loch Sianta/Seunta) is a sea loch, a part of the Cowal peninsula coast of the Firth of Clyde, in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The "Holy Loch" name is believed to date from the 6th century, when Saint Munn landed there a ...

, during the war for naval landing preparations that would be deployed in North Africa and the

Normandy landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

. In the 1950s, the Royal Navy used the loch to store decommissioned naval vessels.

HMNB Clyde His Majesty's Naval Base, Clyde (HMNB Clyde; also HMS ''Neptune''), primarily sited at Faslane on the Gare Loch, is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy (the others being HMNB Devonport and HMNB Portsmouth). It ...

was established on the banks on the loch in 1964 as part of the

's preparations for hosting the

Polaris Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude th ...

submarine based nuclear programme. The site was chosen due to its deep water, suitable for submarine operations and ease of access to the

North Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe a ...

. The site continues to operate a number of naval operations, mostly associated with the current nuclear

Trident A trident is a three- pronged spear. It is used for spear fishing and historically as a polearm. The trident is the weapon of Poseidon, or Neptune, the God of the Sea in classical mythology. The trident may occasionally be held by other mar ...

defence system and also to be the base of the Royal Navy's s. Given the siting of the nuclear missile programme on the Loch, pressure groups such as the

Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) is an organisation that advocates unilateral nuclear disarmament by the United Kingdom, international nuclear disarmament and tighter international arms regulation through agreements such as the Nuc ...

and

Trident Ploughshares Trident Ploughshares (originally named Trident Ploughshares 2000) is an activist anti-nuclear weapons group, founded in 1998 with the aim of ''" beating swords into ploughshares"'' (taken from the Book of Isaiah). This is specifically by attempting ...

have maintained a permanent

peace camp Peace camps are a form of physical protest camp that is focused on anti-war and anti-nuclear activity. They are set up outside military bases by members of the peace movement who oppose either the existence of the military bases themselves, the ...

outside the gates of the naval facility since 1982. The

Royal Marines The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious warfare, amphibious light infantry and also one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighti ...

Garelochhead training camp Garelochhead Training Camp is a military training camp located near Garelochhead in Scotland. History The camp was originally built in 1940 during World War II. Some 22,000 American servicemen were accommodated and trained at the camp prior to ...

was established in the 1940s and is still in use today after a number of new facilities were installed in 2014.

References

{{Portal bar, Scotland Sea lochs of Scotland Lochs of Argyll and Bute Firth of Clyde