Loch Arkaig () is a body of freshwater in

Lochaber Lochaber ( ; ) is a name applied to a part of the Scottish Highlands. Historically, it was a provincial lordship consisting of the parishes of Kilmallie and Kilmonivaig. Lochaber once extended from the Northern shore of Loch Leven, a distric ...

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 ...

, to the west of the

Great Glen The Great Glen ( ), also known as Glen Albyn (from the Gaelic "Glen of Scotland" ) or Glen More (from the Gaelic "Big/Great Glen"), is a glen in Scotland running for from Inverness on the edge of the Moray Firth, in an approximately straig ...

. It is approximately in length and lies above sea level, and the maximum depth is around . The loch is among the last remaining fragments of the

Caledonian pinewood The Caledonian Forest is the ancient (old-growth) temperate forest of Scotland. The forest today is a reduced-extent version of the pre-human-settlement forest, existing in several dozen remnant areas. The Scots pines of the Caledonian Forest ...

, which is native to the UK. The main tributaries are the Dessarry and the Pean, which flow through the glens of the same names, falling into the loch at the extreme west end, by the settlement of Strathan. The mountains of Lochaber lie to the north, and the Forest of Locheil to the south. The outflow is through the River Arkaig at the extreme southeast of the loch, which flows eastwards to

Loch Lochy Loch Lochy () is a large freshwater loch in Lochaber, Highland (council area), Highland, Scotland. With a mean depth of , it is the third-deepest loch of Scotland. Geography Located southwest of Loch Ness along the Glen Albyn, Great Glen, the lo ...

, passing

Achnacarry Achnacarry () is a hamlet, private estate (land), estate, and a castle in the Lochaber region of the Scottish Highlands, Highlands, Scotland. It occupies a strategic position on an isthmus between Loch Lochy to the east, and Loch Arkaig to the w ...

. Two small islands lie at the eastern end of the loch, the larger of which, Island Columbkill, or Eilean Loch Airceig, is the site of a ruined chapel dedicated to

St Columba Columba () or Colmcille (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is today Scotland at the start of the Hiberno-Scottish mission. He founded the important abbey ...

which is the former burial ground of the Camerons of Locheil. A road from the Great Glen follows the north shore of the loch to Strathan where paths lead on to

Knoydart Knoydart () is a peninsula in Lochaber, Highland, on the west coast of Scotland. Knoydart is sandwiched between Lochs Nevis and Hourn — often translated as "Loch Heaven" (from the Gaelic ''Loch Néimh'') and "Loch Hell" (Gaelic: ''Loch ...

Glenfinnan Glenfinnan ( ) is a hamlet in Lochaber area of the Scottish Highlands, Highlands of Scotland. In 1745 the Jacobite rising of 1745, Jacobite rising began here when Prince Charles Edward Stuart ("Bonnie Prince Charlie") raised his House of Stuart ...

and

Loch Morar Loch Morar () is a freshwater loch in the Rough Bounds of Lochaber, Highland (council area), Highland, Scotland. It is the fifth-largest loch by surface area in Scotland, at , and the deepest freshwater body in the British Isles with a maximum ...

. In 1746, Jacobite funds were said to have been hidden here (see

Loch Arkaig treasure The treasure of Loch Arkaig, sometimes known as the Jacobite gold, was a large amount of specie provided by Spain to finance the Jacobite rising in Scotland in 1745, and rumoured still to be hidden at Loch Arkaig in Lochaber. Background In 1745 ...

). In common with a number of other Scottish lochs, Loch Arkaig was at one time supposed to be the home of a

water horse A water horse (or "waterhorse" in some folklore) is a mythical creature that appears in multiple forms in Celtic and Scandinavian folklore, such as the , , the , each-uisge, and kelpie. Name origin The term "water horse" was originally a n ...

. James Harris, 3rd Earl of Malmesbury and twice foreign minister during

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

's reign, recorded in his ''Memoirs of an Ex-Minister'': :"''October 3rd, 1857''. This morning my stalker and his boy gave me an account of a mysterious creature, which they say exists in Loch Arkaig, and which they call the Lake-Horse. It is the same animal of which one has occasionally read accounts in newspapers as having been seen in the Highland lochs, and of the existence of which in

Loch Assynt Loch Assynt () is a freshwater loch in Sutherland, Scotland, north-east of Lochinver. Situated in a spectacular setting between the heights of Canisp, Quinag, and , it receives the outflow from Loch Awe, Inchnadamph, Lochs Awe, , and Loch Leit ...

the late Lord Ellesmere wrote an interesting article, but hitherto the story has always been looked upon as fabulous. I am now, however, nearly persuaded of its truth. My stalker, John Stuart, at

, has seen it twice, and both times at sunrise on a bright sunny day, when there was not a ripple on the water. The creature was basking on the surface; he only saw the head and hind quarters, proving that its back was hollow, which is not the shape of any fish or of a seal. Its head resembled that of a horse.... The Highlanders are very superstitious about this creature. They are convinced that there is never more than one in existence at the same time, and I believe they think it has something diabolical in its nature, for when I said I wished I could get within shot of it, my stalker observed very gravely: 'Perhaps your Lordship's gun would miss fire.'"

External links

Overview
at the Gazetteer for Scotland

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arkaig, Loch Lochs of Highland (council area) Freshwater lochs of Scotland Lochaber Lochy Basin Lochs of Lochaber