Loch Beinn a'Mheadhain, Glen Affrich

Today we took the usual tourist route along Loch Ness, admiring the beautiful views all along the shore. At Drumnadrochit (having spotted the model of Nessie in the Visitors' Centre!) we turned off and headed for Cannich at the head of both Glen Glass and Glen Affrich. Much to my annoyance, I missed the turning for the Corrimony Cairns, which I'd planned to visit. However, the road was too busy to do a U-turn and it was miles before I could safely have turned, so I had to miss them.

It was Glen Affrich we were visiting and our first walk was to Dog Falls, so called because the water forms a dog leg as it cascades down through the very unusual needle shaped rocks on either side. It's not very high, but it's quite dramatic and there's a lovely walk along the river bank too. We had a picnic by the river, before setting off for the next stop at Loch Beinn a' Mheadhain (say Ben a-Vey-un!!)

You may get an idea from the photo just how beautiful the views were here, but this was just one angle and there were many other equally wonderful views in this beautiful glen. The forests are comprised of many of the original Caledonian pine trees and mixed planting, which is so much more attractive than the acres of dense commercial forestry. Down by the loch and skirting the road, there are huge boulders which have broken away from the cliffs. I'm no geologist, but they looked like sandstone, with lots of reds and orange colours mixed with browns and black. Really fascinating and beautiful.

Our final drive took us to the head of the River Affrich before it enters Loch Affrich and again, the views were magnificent. It started to rain just as we were leaving, but we didn't mind, as we'd had the best of the day and a most memorable visit.