Lochinver
Encyclopedia
Lochinver is a village on the coast in the Assynt
district of Sutherland
, Highland
, Scotland
. A few miles northeast is Loch Assynt
which is the source of the River Inver which flows into Loch Inver at the village. There are 200 or so loch
ans in the area which makes the place very popular with anglers. Lochinver is dominated by the "sugar loaf" shape of Caisteal Liath, the summit peak of nearby Suilven
.
Lochinver is the second largest fishing port
in Scotland; frequented by Europe
an fishermen primarily from Spain and France
. Lochinver underwent a major renewal project in the 1990s where the harbour area was rebuilt and a new and much improved loading area was created. This new development involved blasting an area of several hectares out of the surrounding rock. At present the area is mostly undeveloped, with the exception a new Sports Centre.
The back of Lochinver is a beautiful part of Assynt
with local tourism and nature areas being developed in conjunction with small-scale forestry activities. Birdlife in Lochinver includes the curlew
, oystercatcher
and hooded crow
.
Other local villages worth mentioning include Inverkirkaig
– accessed by the road leading up the River Culag – and on the coastal road north: Achmelvich
, Clashmore
, Stoer
, Clashnessie
, Drumbeg
and Culkein Drumbeg
.
In the 1890s, it was suggested that a railway be constructed from Invershin to Lochinver, to 'open up' the Highlands and provide a direct rail connection with ferries to the Western Isles. This scheme was as an alternative to a proposed route to Ullapool
from Garve. In the event, neither were able to obtain funding.
The Lochinver name was adopted in the 1950s by a large (35,000 acres) sheep station in New Zealand's North Island.
Assynt
Assynt is a civil parish in west Sutherland, Highland, Scotland – north of Ullapool.It is famous for its landscape and its remarkable mountains...
district of Sutherland
Sutherland
Sutherland is a registration county, lieutenancy area and historic administrative county of Scotland. It is now within the Highland local government area. In Gaelic the area is referred to according to its traditional areas: Dùthaich 'IcAoidh , Asainte , and Cataibh...
, Highland
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. A few miles northeast is Loch Assynt
Loch Assynt
Loch Assynt is a freshwater loch in Sutherland, Scotland, 8 km ENE of Lochinver.Situated in a spectacular setting between the heights of Canisp, Quinag and Beinn Uidhe, it receives the outflow from Lochs Awe, Maol a' Choire, and Leitir Easaich. It discharges into the sea at Loch Inver, via the...
which is the source of the River Inver which flows into Loch Inver at the village. There are 200 or so loch
Loch
Loch is the Irish and Scottish Gaelic word for a lake or a sea inlet. It has been anglicised as lough, although this is pronounced the same way as loch. Some lochs could also be called a firth, fjord, estuary, strait or bay...
ans in the area which makes the place very popular with anglers. Lochinver is dominated by the "sugar loaf" shape of Caisteal Liath, the summit peak of nearby Suilven
Suilven
Suilven is one of the most distinctive mountains in Scotland. Lying in a remote area in the west of Sutherland, it rises almost vertically from a wilderness landscape of moorland, bogs and lochans known as Inverpolly National Nature Reserve....
.
Lochinver is the second largest fishing port
Port
A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....
in Scotland; frequented by Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an fishermen primarily from Spain and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Lochinver underwent a major renewal project in the 1990s where the harbour area was rebuilt and a new and much improved loading area was created. This new development involved blasting an area of several hectares out of the surrounding rock. At present the area is mostly undeveloped, with the exception a new Sports Centre.
The back of Lochinver is a beautiful part of Assynt
Assynt
Assynt is a civil parish in west Sutherland, Highland, Scotland – north of Ullapool.It is famous for its landscape and its remarkable mountains...
with local tourism and nature areas being developed in conjunction with small-scale forestry activities. Birdlife in Lochinver includes the curlew
Curlew
The curlews , genus Numenius, are a group of eight species of birds, characterised by long, slender, downcurved bills and mottled brown plumage. They are one of the most ancient lineages of scolopacid waders, together with the godwits which look similar but have straight bills...
, oystercatcher
Oystercatcher
The oystercatchers are a group of waders; they form the family Haematopodidae, which has a single genus, Haematopus. They are found on coasts worldwide apart from the polar regions and some tropical regions of Africa and South East Asia...
and hooded crow
Hooded Crow
The Hooded Crow is a Eurasian bird species in the crow genus. Widely distributed, it is also known locally as Scotch Crow, Danish Crow, and Corbie or Grey Crow in Ireland, which is what its Welsh name, Brân Lwyd, translates as...
.
Other local villages worth mentioning include Inverkirkaig
Inverkirkaig
Inverkirkaig is extremely remote scattered crofting township, situated on the north eastern bay, of the sea loch Loch Kirkaig, in the Assynt district of Sutherland, Scottish Highlands and is in the Scottish council area of Highland....
– accessed by the road leading up the River Culag – and on the coastal road north: Achmelvich
Achmelvich
Achmelvich is a settlement situated in the Highland region of Scotland. The name comes from the Gaelic "Achadh" - a plain or meadow and "mealvaich" - sandy dunes...
, Clashmore
Clashmore
Clashmore is a village in west County Waterford, Ireland. It is also a parish in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Waterford and Lismore....
, Stoer
Stoer
Stoer is a crofting township in the parish of Assynt, Sutherland, in the Highlands of Scotland and in the council area of Highland. It is located about five miles north of the village of Lochinver....
, Clashnessie
Clashnessie
Clashnessie is a small crofting community on the North-West coast of Scotland; specifically in the Assynt area of Sutherland.The township is scattered around the sandy beach of Clashnessie Bay and derives its name from the Gaelic clais an easaidh, meaning glen of the waterfall , referring to...
, Drumbeg
Drumbeg, Sutherland
Drumbeg is a remote crofting village on the north west coast of Scotland in Assynt, Sutherland, Scottish Highlands and is in the Scottish council area of Highland....
and Culkein Drumbeg
Culkein Drumbeg
Culkein Drumbeg is a remote village on the north west coast of Scotland. It is located north west of Drumbeg in Assynt, Sutherland, in the Highland council area....
.
In the 1890s, it was suggested that a railway be constructed from Invershin to Lochinver, to 'open up' the Highlands and provide a direct rail connection with ferries to the Western Isles. This scheme was as an alternative to a proposed route to Ullapool
Ullapool
Ullapool is a small town of around 1,300 inhabitants in Ross and Cromarty, Highland, Scotland. Despite its small size, it is the largest settlement for many miles around, and is a major tourist destination of Scotland. The North Atlantic Drift passes by Ullapool, bringing moderate temperatures...
from Garve. In the event, neither were able to obtain funding.
The Lochinver name was adopted in the 1950s by a large (35,000 acres) sheep station in New Zealand's North Island.
Lochinver in film
- 1973 The Highlands and Islands - A Royal Tour , a documentary about Prince Charles' visit to the Highlands and Islands, directed by Oscar MarzaroliOscar MarzaroliOscar Marzaroli was an Italian-born Scottish photographer of post-World War II urban Scotland. He was born in Castiglione in northwest Italy and came to Scotland with his family at the age of two....
.