| Lake of Menteith | |
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 Looking towardsPort of Menteith | |
  Lake of Menteith | |
| Coordinates | 56°10′28″N4°17′32″W / 56.1744°N 4.2921°W /56.1744; -4.2921 |
| Type | freshwaterloch |
| Primary outflows | River Forth |
| Max. length | 2.4 km (1.5 mi)[1] |
| Max. width | 1.6 km (1 mi)[1] |
| Surface area | 252 ha (620 acres)[2] |
| Average depth | 6.02 m (19.75 ft)[1] |
| Max. depth | 23 m (77 ft)[1] |
| Shore length1 | 9.7 km (6.0 mi)[2] |
| Surface elevation | 18 m (59 ft)[2] |
| Islands | Inchmahome, Dog Isle,Inch Talla |
| 1 Shore length isnot a well-defined measure. | |
Lake of Menteith, also known asLoch Inchmahome (Scottish Gaelic:Loch Innis Mo Cholmaig), is aloch inScotland located on theCarse of Stirling (the flood plain of the upper reaches of the riversForth andTeith, upstream fromStirling).[1][2]
Until the early 19th century, the loch was more commonly known by the Scottish name, “Loch of Menteith”, although, on the 1654 map,Blaeu Atlas of Scotland, it is identified as “Loch Inche Mahumo”. The only settlement of any size on the Loch of Menteith is thePort of Menteith.[3]
There are a number of small islands in the loch. On the largest,Inchmahome, isInchmahome Priory, an ancientmonastery. Thepriory served as refuge toMary, Queen of Scots, in 1547. She was only four years old at the time and stayed for three weeks after the disastrousBattle of Pinkie Cleugh in September of that year. The loch is not particularly deep and can freeze over completely in exceptionally cold winters. If the ice becomes thick enough, at least 7 inches (18 cm),[4] an outdoorcurling tournament called theBonspiel (or theGrand Match) is held on the loch. The event can attract thousands of curlers even though it is held very infrequently. The last Grand Match was held in 1979. The Bonspiel that had been planned for 2010 was abandoned on health and safety grounds.[5]
The Lake of Menteith is often thought of as the only body of water inScotland that is referred to as alake. Actually, there are several others, some of which have been artificially created:Pressmennan Lake,East Lothian; theLake of the Hirsel,Berwickshire; Lake Louise (within the grounds ofSkibo Castle,Sutherland); Raith Lake,Fife;[6] Upper Lake and Kelly Lake (both nearHaddo House,Aberdeenshire); Pitfour Lake and Cally Lake (nearGatehouse of Fleet,Kirkcudbrightshire). There is also a sea bay nearKirkcudbright known as Manxman's Lake. Nearly all other major bodies of water in Scotland are known aslochs.
The unusual name “Lake of Menteith” is believed to be due to the UK Government's Ordnance Survey in 1838 who mapped the area for the first time, and identified it as a “lake” because it was referred to as a lake in literature that was prominent at the time.[citation needed]
There was aRoman fort at a site associated with theGask Ridge, to the west of the lake. The Romans may have referred to the site as "Lindon".[7] It was discovered by David Wilson[8] andKenneth St Joseph in 1968 when they were conducting an aerial survey ofFlanders Moss.[9] After taking aerial photographs, they assessed the site by measuring resistance and magnetic susceptibility at ground level.[10]
In 2020, the lake was featured in theBBC programmeSpringwatch, presented by wildlife photographerGordon Buchanan.[13]
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.| International | |
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