Loch Insh is a

loch ''Loch'' ( ) is a word meaning "lake" or "inlet, sea inlet" in Scottish Gaelic, Scottish and Irish Gaelic, subsequently borrowed into English. In Irish contexts, it often appears in the anglicized form "lough". A small loch is sometimes calle ...

in the

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 ...

. It is situated in the

Cairngorms National Park Cairngorms National Park () is a national park in northeast Scotland, established in 2003. It was the second of National parks of Scotland, two national parks established by the Scottish Parliament, after Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National ...

on the

River Spey The River Spey () is a river in the northeast of Scotland. At it is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom and the third longest and fastest-flowing river in Scotland. It is an important location for the traditions of salmon fishing an ...

, in the heart of Badenoch and Strathspey, immediately downstream of the Insh Marshes. It is around south-west of

Aviemore Aviemore (; ) is a town and tourist resort, situated within the Cairngorms National Park in the Highlands of Scotland. It is in the Badenoch and Strathspey committee area, within the Highland council area. The town is popular for skiing and ...

and north-east of Kingussie. The nearest village to the loch is Kincraig, just to the north. The loch is a popular location for

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, Windsurfing, windsurfer, or Kitesurfing, kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (Land sa ...

windsurfing Windsurfing is a wind-propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the Californian aerospace and surf culture. Windsurfing gain ...

and

kayaking Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving over water. It is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle. A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits fac ...

canoeing Canoeing is an activity which involves paddling a canoe with a single-bladed paddle. In some parts of Europe, canoeing refers to both canoeing and kayaking, with a canoe being called an 'open canoe' or Canadian. A few of the recreational ...

, and has a

watersports Water sports or aquatic sports are sports activities conducted on waterbodies and can be categorized according to the degree of immersion by the participants. On the water * Boat racing, the use of powerboats to participate in races * Boatin ...

and outdoor centre on the eastern side of the loch. It is also a popular fishing spot for

Brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a species of salmonid ray-finned fish and the most widely distributed species of the genus ''Salmo'', endemic to most of Europe, West Asia and parts of North Africa, and has been widely introduced globally ...

and Pike, either from the banks or a boat, although a permit is required. Loch Insh is roughly rectangular, about long and wide, with a small island near the outlet. The loch is generally shallow , and located at a medium altitude above

Ordnance datum An ordnance datum (OD) is a vertical datum used by an ordnance survey as the basis for deriving altitudes on maps. A spot height may be expressed as above ordnance datum (AOD). Usually mean sea level (MSL) at a particular place is used for the d ...

Loch Insh Outdoor Centre

A water sports centre was set up on Loch Insh in 1969 by Clive Freshwater and his wife Sally, leasing a small boathouse from the

Forestry Commission The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the management of publicly owned forests and the regulation of both public and private forestry in England. The Forestry Commission was previously also respons ...

. It has since been developed into a multi-sport outdoor centre with a restaurant, bar and shop, plus a range of accommodation including chalets and Insh Hall. In 2005, the

Princess Royal Princess Royal is a substantive title, title customarily (but not automatically) awarded by British monarchs to their eldest daughters. Although purely honorary, it is the highest honour that may be given to a female member of the royal famil ...

opened an extension to the centre. Freshwater offered trips down the River Spey, but the landowners argued they were disturbing the

Salmon Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...

fisheries. After protracted wrangling, he eventually won the case four years later. The "Spey Canoe Case" was decided in the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

, having been described as "the biggest case on water rights in Scotland for the last 250 years". Freshwater had personally gathered evidence to show the river was being used for public navigation in the 18th century, thus the Spey was a public navigable waterway.

Loch Insh Ospreys

The island of Tom Dubh at the outlet of Loch Insh has been the nesting site for pairs of

Osprey The osprey (; ''Pandion haliaetus''), historically known as sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and a wingspan of . It ...

since 1993. By August 2020, 53 young Ospreys had been successfully raised, with three siblings in that year alone. The island is part of the

RSPB The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a Charitable_organization#United_Kingdom, charitable organisation registered in Charity Commission for England and Wales, England and Wales and in Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, ...

's Insh Marshes reserve, and spikes were added to the tree in 1995 to deter egg thieves.

Gallery

File:Creag Far Leitre - geograph.org.uk - 388289.jpg, Skyline across Loch Insh File:Loch Insh - geograph.org.uk - 370815.jpg, Loch Insh File:Loch Insh - geograph.org.uk - 238363.jpg, Loch Insh with miles of marshland upstream towards Kingussie File:Misty Morning on Loch Insh - geograph.org.uk - 148480.jpg, Loch Insh in the mist

External links

Loch Insh Watersports
{{DEFAULTSORT:Insh Lochs of Highland (council area) Badenoch and Strathspey Freshwater lochs of Scotland LInch

Loch Insh Outdoor Centre

Loch Insh Ospreys

Gallery

See also

External links

References