Susan Taylor goes in search of big skies, high mountains, deep water and a legendary monster – where else but the Highlands?
C Nessieland, in Drumnadrochit, is a very popular visitor attraction
CONDITIONS WERE, well, not exactly ideal for a pleasant waterside stroll, but perhaps just right for a spot of monster hunting. A mist hung over the loch, now and then obscuring the lone boat moored at the end of a jetty, as a persistent drizzle soaked everything and the wind sent ripples across the surface of the water.
Legends abound
Standing at the water’s edge, it was easy to understand how tales of monster sightings arose, as indistinct shapes appeared then disappeared again in the murk – was that a tree stump or a hump, a broken branch or the swish of a tail?
We were, of course, at Loch Ness, in the Great Glen area of the Scottish Highlands. Deeming the weather unfit for a boat trip (we were deep in the clutches of squally rain despite it being summertime), we had opted instead to explore part of the shore near our pitch at Loch Ness Bay Camping. A 15-minute stroll across the fields behind the site took us to a quiet, peaceful spot at the water’s edge, with lovely views across the loch to the mountains on the far side – when they weren’t obscured by mist and rain.
But of course, what caught our attention was the loch itself. Holding more water than all the lakes of England and Wales combined, almost pitch-black in parts thanks to the peat that runs off the hills, and lying on the Great Glen Fault (which, I’m reliably informed by the locals, caused the rise of Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Britain), Loch Ness is very dark and foreboding indeed.
Who knows what creatures lie in its impenetrable depths? St Columba, writing in the sixth century, certainly thought he knew, reporting seeing a creature biting a woman before he ordered it to retreat (which it obediently did).
Sporadic sightings continued down the centuries until 1933, when a hotel manager reported seeing a “whale-like creature” and soon after, a couple driving near the same spot described an “extraordinary animal”. From then on, the legend grew rapidly. Numerous sightings were reported, many of which proved to be false, but today, the mystery lives on, and standing on those atmospheric shores, I can understand why. Sadly, we cannot add to the list of sightings, despite our best efforts (maybe our giggling
