The River Nevis flows from the mountains east of
Ben Nevis
Ben Nevis ( ; , ) is the highest mountain in Scotland, the United Kingdom, and the British Isles. Ben Nevis stands at the western end of the Grampian Mountains in the Highland region of Lochaber, close to the town of Fort William.
The mount ...
to its mouth near the town of
Fort William in
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 ...
.
Overview
The river rises in the
Mamores mountain range approximately halfway between Ben Nevis and
Loch Treig, 370m above sea level. In its upper reaches it is known as ''Water of Nevis'', becoming River Nevis at the bridge near
Achriabhach. It is partly fed by the
Steall Waterfall, one of the highest waterfalls in Scotland.
The river flows through
Glen Nevis and on to the town of Fort William where it is crossed by the Nevis Bridge on the
A82 road
The A82 is a major road in Scotland that runs from Glasgow to Inverness via Fort William, Highland, Fort William. It is one of the principal north-south routes in Scotland and is mostly a trunk road managed by Transport Scotland, who view it a ...
. Its mouth is at the sea loch of
Loch Linnhe
Loch Linnhe ( ) is a sea loch in the Highland Council area, in the west of Scotland. The part upstream of Corran is known in Gaelic as (the black pool, originally known as Loch Abar), and downstream as (the salty pool). The name ''Linnhe ...
where it meets the sea within the
estuary
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...
of the River Lochy.
The river shares its name with an amateur football team playing in the Glasgow Colleges Football Association.
History
During the
Battle of Inverlochy (1645)
The Battle of Inverlochy occurred on 2 February 1645, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, when a Cavalier, Royalist force of Highlanders and Confederate Ireland, Confederate Irish troops under the overall command of James Graham, 1st Ma ...
many of
Argyll's men were drowned as they tried to cross the river while fleeing from the Royalist forces.
The river and Loch Linnhe were important natural defences considered in the construction of Fort William in the late 17th century.
Leisure
The river has a
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 ...
population which was threatened in the 1990s but has improved since. The river and its
glen are tourist destinations for fishing, walking, cycling, canoeing and climbing,
and are regarded as among the most scenic destinations in the country.
Several guidebooks document walking
trails
A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or a small paved road (though it can also be a route along a navigable waterways) generally not intended for usage by motorized vehicles, usually passing through a natural area. Ho ...
along the river, including the northern end of the
West Highland Way
The West Highland Way () is a linear Long-distance trail, long-distance route in Scotland. It is long, running from Milngavie north of Glasgow to Fort William, Highland, Fort William in the Scottish Highlands, with an element of hill walking i ...
. Upstream the river's depth varies widely dependent upon seasonal rainfall and snowmelt, and at Steall Meadows the river can be waded on foot at certain times; a three-wire
simple suspension bridge
A simple suspension bridge (also rope bridge, swing bridge (in New Zealand), suspended bridge, hanging bridge and catenary bridge) is a primitive type of bridge in which the deck of the bridge lies on two parallel load-bearing cables that ar ...
is provided for when the flow does not permit this.
For canoeists the upper reaches of the river at Scimitar Gorge, when swollen by heavy rainfall, are designated a
Grade 5 stretch, demanding a very high level of concentration and skill and described by the Scottish Canoe Association as a "maelstrom of water".
See also
*
List of rivers of Scotland
This list of rivers in Scotland is organised geography, geographically, taken anti-clockwise, from Berwick-upon-Tweed. Tributary, Tributaries are listed down the page in an upstream direction. (L) indicates a left-bank tributary and (R) indicat ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nevis
Nevis
Nevis ( ) is an island in the Caribbean Sea that forms part of the inner arc of the Leeward Islands chain of the West Indies. Nevis and the neighbouring island of Saint Kitts constitute the Saint Kitts and Nevis, Federation of Saint Kitts ...
Lochaber