At 56 km2 (22 sq mi), Loch Ness is the second-largestScottish loch by surface area afterLoch Lomond[citation needed], but due to its great depth it is the largest by volume in Great Britain[citation needed]. Its deepest point is 230 metres (126 fathoms; 755 feet), making it the second deepest loch in Scotland afterLoch Morar[citation needed]. It contains more water than all the lakes in England and Wales combined[citation needed], and is the largest body of water in the Great Glen, which runs from Inverness in the north toFort William in the south. Its surface is 16 metres (52 feet) abovesea level. It contains a single, artificial island named Cherry Island (Scottish Gaelic:Eilean Muireach) at the southwestern end. There are nine villages around the loch, as well asUrquhart Castle; the village ofDrumnadrochit contains a "Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition".
Loch Ness is an elongated freshwaterloch in theScottish Highlands southwest ofInverness, extending for approximately 37 kilometres (23 miles) and flowing from southwest to northeast. At 56 km2 (22 sq mi), it is the second-largestScottish loch by surface area afterLoch Lomond, but due to its great depth it is the largest by volume in the British Isles.[citation needed] Its deepest point is 230 metres (126 fathoms; 755 feet),[3][4] making it the second deepest loch in Scotland afterLoch Morar. A 2016 survey claimed to have discovered a crevice extending to a depth of 271 m (889 ft), but further research determined this to be asonar anomaly.[5] Its surface is 16 metres (52 feet) abovesea level. It contains more water than all the lakes in England and Wales combined,[4] and is the largest body of water in theGreat Glen, which runs from Inverness in the north toFort William in the south. Loch Ness lies along theGreat Glen Fault, which forms a line of weakness in the rocks which has been excavated by glacial erosion, forming theGreat Glen and the basins ofLoch Lochy,Loch Oich and Loch Ness.[6]
Loch Ness has one small island, Cherry Island (Scottish Gaelic:Eilean Muireach, meaning Murdoch's Island), at the southwestern end of the loch. It is an artificial island, known as acrannog, and was likely constructed during theIron Age.[7] The island was originally 160 feet (49 m) by 168 feet (51 m) across, but is now smaller as the water level was raised during the construction of theCaledonian Canal in the early nineteenth century.[7] There was formerly a second, natural island nearby named Dog Island (Scottish Gaelic:Eilean Nan Con), but it was submerged when the water level rose.[7][8] A castle stood on Cherry Island during the 15th century; this was constructed of stone and oak wood and was likely used as a fortified refuge. Rev. Odo Blundell, writing in 1909, suggested that Eilean Muireach may have been a hunting lodge, with Eilean nan Con the home for the hunting dogs.[7]
The loch is one of a series of interconnected, murky bodies of water in Scotland; its water visibility is exceptionally low due to a highpeat content in the surrounding soil. The southern end is fed by theRiver Oich, which runs from Loch Oich. The northern end flows out through the BonaNarrows intoLoch Dochfour; theBathymetrical survey of the Scottish fresh-water lochs considered Loch Dochfour to be distinct fromLoch Ness proper, but capable of being regarded as forming part of Loch Ness.[9]Dochgarrochweir at the downstream end of Loch Dochfour delineates the start of theRiver Ness, which connects to the nearby and ultimately leads through Inverness to theNorth Sea via theMoray Firth. Loch Ness forms part of the Caledonian Canal, which comprises 60 miles (100 kilometres) of waterways connecting the east coast of Scotland at Inverness with the west coast atCorpachthe nearFort William. Only one-third of the entire length is man-made, the rest being formed by Loch Dochfour, Loch Ness, Loch Oich, and Loch Lochy, with the man-made canals running parallel with rivers such as the River Oich.[10]
AtDrumnadrochit is the "Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition"[11] which examines the natural history and legend of Loch Ness. Boat cruises operate from various locations on the loch shore, giving visitors the chance to look for the "monster".
Urquhart Castle is located on the western shore, 2 kilometres (1+1⁄4 miles) east of Drumnadrochit.
Lighthouses are located at the northern and southern ends at Lochend (Bona Lighthouse) and Fort Augustus. There is anRNLI lifeboat station on the northern shore near Drumnadrochit, which has been operational since 2008 and was the first non-coastal RNLI station.[12] It is staffed by a volunteer crew and equipped with an inshore lifeboat (ILB).[13]
Loch Ness takes its name from the River Ness which flows from the loch's northern end. The river's name probably derives from an old Celtic word meaning 'roaring one'.[14] William Mackay in his 1893 bookUrquhart and Glenmoriston: Olden times in a highland parish recounts two Scottish legends that have been reported as the source of the name. In the first, a spring in a valley had been enchanted by Daly the Druid for purity, with the admonition that the well opening must be covered by a stone whenever not in use, or else "desolation will overtake the land". One day a woman left the well uncovered when rushing to save her baby from a fire, and it overflowed and filled the vale, forming the loch. The inhabitants cried out "Tha loch 'nis ann, tha loch 'nis ann!" ("There's a loch now, there's a loch now!"), and so it was named "Loch Nis". A second legend, named "The Tales of the Sons of Uisneach" by Mackay and now considered part of theUlster Cycle ofIrish mythology, recounts the Irish womanDeirdre or Dearduil, "the most beautiful woman of her age", who was courted by the king ofUlster,Conachar MacNessa; she fell in love instead with his cousinNoais, son of Uisneach. They fled to Scotland and were married on the banks of the loch, but Noais was slain by MacNessa, and the Loch Naois, River Naois, and Iverness were named after him. Mackay claims that while these legends are not the "true" origin of the name, that many places in the district have names associated with "The Tales of the Sons of Uisneach", and that the same tales have Conachar MacNessa's mother as the river goddess Ness. He argued instead that the etymology of the Celtic "Ness" derived from earlier words for "river".[15]
Loch Ness is known as the home of the mythical Loch Ness Monster (also known as "Nessie"), acryptid, reputedly a large unknown animal. It is similar to other supposed lake monsters in Scotland and elsewhere, though its description varies from one account to the next. Popular interest and belief in the animal's existence have varied since it was first brought to the world's attention in 1933.[16]
Urquhart Bay and Loch Ness viewed from Grant's Tower atUrquhart Castle
The following fish species are native to Loch Ness. A number of others such asperch androach have beenintroduced in the Loch orCaledonian Canal with various levels of success.[17]
Loch Ness serves as the lower storage reservoir for the 300MWFoyerspumped-storagehydroelectric scheme, which opened in 1975.[2] A smaller (5MW) power station nearby used to provide power for analuminiumsmelting plant, but nowelectricity is generated and supplied to theNational Grid. Another scheme, the 100-megawattGlendoe Hydro Scheme nearFort Augustus, began generation in June 2009.[18] It was out of service between 2009 and 2012 for repair of the tunnels connecting the reservoir to the turbines.[19][20] The 450 MW / 2.8 GWh Red John project was approved in 2021. If funded at £550 million, it would store 5 million cubic metres of water nearDores.[21][22]
On 31 August 1974, David Scott Munro, of Ross-shire Caberfeidh Water Ski Club, became the first person in the world towater ski (mono ski) the length of Loch Ness. From Lochend toFort Augustus and back, he covered the 77 km (48 miles) in 77 minutes at an average speed of 60 km/h (37 mph).[25]
In July 1966, Brenda Sherratt became the first person to swim the length of the loch. It took her 31 hours and 27 minutes to accomplish this feat.[26]
On 23 September 2022, swimmer Ross Edgley attempted the world's longest open water non-stop swim in Loch Ness.After 52 hours and 39 minutes he was forced to end his swim early due to the onset of cellulitis and hypothermia and was taken to hospital. The swim was done in support of Parley for the Oceans.[27]
^Dill, W.A. (1993).Inland Fisheries of Europe, p. 227. EIFACFAO Technical Report 52 suppl.
^abCooper, Michael Colin (1999)."Site description"(PDF).Laminated Sediments of Loch Ness, Scotland: Indicators of Holocene Environmental Change (PhD). University of Plymouth. Retrieved31 October 2021.
^Mackay, William (1893).Urquhart and Glenmoriston: Olden times in a highland parish. Northern Counties Newspaper and Printing and Publishing Company. pp. 5–7, 575.
