Loch Tay
| Loch Tay | ||
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| Loch Tay at the Crannog Center | ||
| Geographical location | Perth and Kinross , Stirling , Scotland | |
| Tributaries | Lochay , Dochart | |
| Drain | Tay | |
| Places on the shore | Killin , Kenmore | |
| Data | ||
| Coordinates | 56 ° 31 '42 " N , 4 ° 7' 53" W | |
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| surface | 26 km² | |
| volume | 1.6 km³ | |
| Maximum depth | 150 m | |
| Middle deep | 61 m | |
Loch Tay ( Scottish Gaelic : Loch Tatha ) is a freshwater lake in the Scottish Highlands . It is located in the Council Areas Perth and Kinross and Stirling about 50 km west of Perth . Loch Tay is the sixth largest lake in Scotland measured by the size of the water surface of about 26 km² .
description
Loch Tay has the typical elongated shape of a lake formed by glaciers in the Ice Age . It's about 14 miles long, but only one to one and a half kilometers wide. The water volume covers around 1.6 km³. The greatest depth of the lake is 150 meters. The average depth is 61 meters. Loch Tay is an S-shape between Killin at the southwest end and Kenmore at the northeast end. The Lochay and Dochart rivers flow into the lake at Killin , and the Tay leaves it at Kenmore .
The main road A827 runs along the northern bank of the lake, the southern bank is only accessible to local traffic by a single-lane road. It leaves the main road at the Dochart Falls in Killin and reaches it again at Kenmore at the other end of the lake . It is certainly the more scenic of the two routes.
A little south of Kenmore is the Crannog Center , the reconstruction of one of the typical Crannógs , houses that were built on stilts in the lake for protection. The reconstructed building can be visited. About one kilometer northeast of Kenmore is Taymouth Castle with an adjacent golf course. Taymouth Castle is not open to the public due to safety regulations.
Loch Tay is of limited use as a bathing lake for travelers because it is very difficult to get to the shore by car. There is only a few driveways, so at Kenmore , at Killin , and in some places along the road that runs south. Even on foot, the lake is only accessible in a few places, as the shore is used almost everywhere privately and serves as pastureland.
history
In earlier times there were many small farms along the lake, but these were largely destroyed during the Highland Clearances of the 19th century . And today agriculture is no longer worthwhile here, tourism is a more productive source of income.
There was once a railway connection from the Callander to Oban line that led to Killin . There you took the steamer across the lake to Kenmore , and from there it was only a short distance by stagecoach to the rail connection in Aberfeldy , from where the train journey to Perth or north could continue. Both the railroad and the steamship no longer operate. Since 2005 , the old jetty has been used again by a modern tourist steamer.
