Enard Bay is a large remote tidal coastal
embayment
A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...
, located 10.5 miles northwest of
Ullapool, in northwestern
Ross and Cromarty
Ross and Cromarty (), is an area in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. In modern usage, it is a registration county and a Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. Between 1889 and 1975 it was a Shires of Scotland, county.
Historical ...
,
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands (; , ) is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Scottish Lowlands, Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Scots language, Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gae ...
in the west coast of
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
. The mouth of the bay is about 4.5 miles across running from the head of
Rubha Mòr peninsula at Rubna Na CòiGeach (English:
Ru Coygach) point to Rubna Na Brèige (English:
Kirkaig point) to the east.
Settlements
In the coast of the bay, which travels almost on a north bearing downwards in diagonal from west to east has a number of settlements, the principle settlement is
Lochinver
Lochinver (''Loch an Inbhir'' in Scottish Gaelic, Gaelic) is a village at the head of the sea loch Loch Inver, on the coast in the Assynt district of Sutherland, Scottish Highlands, Highland, Scotland. A few miles north-east is Loch Assynt which ...
, which is located on its inlet to the north west.
Geography
Enard Bay is bounded by
Rhuba Mòr peninsula that runs from the northwest to the southeast in the south. To the south of Rhuba Mòr lies the
Summer Isles
The Summer Isles (, ) are an archipelago lying in the mouth of Loch Broom, in the Highland region of Scotland.
Geography
Tanera Mòr is the largest island and was the last one to remain inhabited.Kane, Jenny (20 November 2014) "Last permanent ...
and further which is in the verdant and ancient
shire
Shire () is a traditional term for an administrative division of land in Great Britain and some other English-speaking countries. It is generally synonymous with county (such as Cheshire and Worcestershire). British counties are among the oldes ...
of
Argyll
Argyll (; archaically Argyle; , ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a Shires of Scotland, historic county and registration county of western Scotland. The county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975 and most of the area ...
, whose old name was A’ Chleit.
On the west most south coast of Enard Bay, before the coast bears northwest is an inlet that forms into Enard Bay from
Achnahaird Bay. At the head of Achnahaird Bay is a large white sandy beach. To the east of Achnahaird Bay is Garvie Bay, with a small sandy beach. Slightly Further east is the small Lag na Saille inlet. Polly bay is further to the east and north, close to the small rocky Green island. To the north of Polly bay is the sea loch, Loch an Èisg Brachaidh located to the west of the group of small islands.
The bay has a number of small islands, of which
Eilean Mòr, located on the northeast corner of the bay is the largest. Fraochlan Island located less than quarter mile north is the next smallest, followed by the Eilean Mòineseach. Green Island is a small island located to the south in the southeast of the bay.
A number of small fast flowing streams flow into the bay, the biggest amongst them is the River Polly, which flows into the Polly bay inlet.
The sea lochs,
Loch Inver
Loch Inver is a sea loch in Assynt, Sutherland and is on the northwest coast of Scotland. The loch meets the coastal embayment of Enard Bay at the north end and The Minch, where it meets Soyea Island at its mouth. The village of Lochinver
...
and much larger
Loch Kirkaig are located to the north of the bay.
Gallery
File:From the Achiltibuie Road - geograph.org.uk - 655035.jpg, From the Achiltibuie Road Looking across Garvie Bay, up to Enard Bay; the island is probably Eilan Mor, with Green Island towards the right.
File:Rubh a Choin - geograph.org.uk - 1475896.jpg, Rubh a Choin Rocky shoreline near the end of the peninsula between Garvie and Achnahaird bays. Suilven in the distance across Enard Bay.
File:Bracken slopes down to Loch an Eisg-brachaidh - geograph.org.uk - 1380313.jpg, Bracken slopes down to Loch an Eisg-brachaidh The islands in Enard Bay beyond.
File:Loch Roe - geograph.org.uk - 82485.jpg, Loch Roe. Looking south over the entrance to Loch Roe with Enard Bay in the west. The headland in the distance is Rubha na Coigich.
File:Quinag from Achnahaird - geograph.org.uk - 7285.jpg, Quinag from Achnahaird. A glint of sunshine picks out the ridge of Quinag across Enard Bay from Achnahaird.
File:Cnoc Mor - geograph.org.uk - 1492223.jpg, Cnoc Mor is a low ridge reaching 72m above sea level overlooking Achnahaird and Enard Bays. Looking in a northerly direction towards the coast near Stoer.
See also
*
List of lochs in Scotland
This list of lochs in Scotland includes the majority of bodies of standing freshwater named as lochs but only a small selection of the generally smaller, and very numerous, lochans. This list does not currently include the reservoirs of Scotlan ...
References
{{reflist
Bays of Ross and Cromarty