Loch Ness

What could be more emblematic of the Highlands in Scotland than Loch Ness? Almost reaching famed mythological status, some visitors almost seem surprised that it actually exists in real life and many a tourist continue to scan its murky depths for the Loch Ness monster, Nessie.

Put aside the rumours, myths, and monsters and you have a shimmeringly beautiful body of water, steely grey and peaty, located southwest of Inverness in the Highlands, also accessible from Fort William. Shaped like a slim, elongated feather, it also has unfathomable depths - the second deepest loch in Scotland after Loch Morar. One of a series of interconnecting lakes, Loch Ness eventually follows a riverine path into the river Ness, filtering through to the Moray Firth inlet before meeting the North Sea. It is also part of the Caledonian Canal which was constructed in the 19th-century by Scottish engineer Thomas Telford. Surrounded on all sides by heather-adorned hillocks which open out onto archetypal glens Urquhart and Affric, this is characteristic Scottish territory in all its beauty and the place for gentle walks around the loch’s edge, stumbling across ruinous settlements which make great photo opportunities like the romantic tumble-down charm of Castle Urquhart. A symbol of Highlands heritage, its 1,000-year-old history is told through a fascinating collection of artefacts.

The village of Drumnadrochit at the top of Urquhart Bay caters to those interested in the legend of Nessie the Loch Ness monster – scratch that itch if you must at the Loch Ness Centre and Nessieland or simply gaze out onto the reflective water, and one of Scotland’s most evocative sights.