Glenmoriston
A beautiful and often overlooked area of the Scottish Highlands, Glenmoriston or Glen Moriston (Scottish Gaelic: Gleann Moireasdan) is a river glen situated between Loch Ness, at the village of Invermoriston, and Loch Cluanie in Glen Shiel.
The River Moriston runs along the length of the glen and provides plenty of dramatic, scenic views and supports a wealth of wildlife. At Invermoriston the river passes under the historic Thomas Telford bridge, tumbling down dramatic rapids and swirling around rocky outcrops on its way eastwards where it drains into the iconic Loch Ness.
About five miles upriver from Invermoriston is Loch Dundreggan, where the natural force of the river provides power through a hydro-electric dam. Larger volumes of water are let out of the dam once per week throughout the salmon season making it a popular attraction for white water rafting and canoeing.
We hope you enjoy exploring this website and finding out more about this wonderful area.
Glenmoriston Improvement Group
February 2020 saw the formation of a new voluntary community group in Glenmoriston, snappily acronymed GIG (Glenmoriston Improvement Group)! After an open meeting in the Glenmoriston Millennium Hall, it was agreed that a community group could help to bring resources into the Glen and work on projects our residents had said were needed.
No sooner was the group in place when lockdown hit.Nevertheless, GIG has managed a few developments, supported by volunteers in our community and by funds from Fort Augustus and Glenmoriston Community Company:
CURRENT & COMPLETED PROJECTS...
Glenmoriston.net Community Website
Created as one of the first projects undertaken by Glenmoriston Improvement Group, this website aims to provide resources for both residents and visitors of the area known as Glenmoriston.
War Memorial Improvements
Glenmoriston Estate, who own the land around the memorial, have given approval to erect a commemorative bench and to stone-chip the area where people stand. This will help in 2021 to make the Remembrance Day events safer and more accessible.
Christmas Lights
The small garden area near to the Millennium Hall was the site for a display, which was designed after consultation with local children. It featured coloured rope lights, Star, Snowmen and Deer, Candy Canes, Wise Men and Angels along with Golden Christmas tree shapes outside the hall on the A82. Next year we plan to light the row of trees alongside the car park,once we get permission to access the electricity supply there. Many thanks to the Glenmoriston Millennium Hall Committee, who allowed us to use their electricity to bring a smile and much-needed cheer to our community.
PLANNED PROJECTS...
Glenmoriston Beastie Trail
Plans are afoot to set up a heritage/nature trail around Invermoriston and Glenmoriston, with marker posts which offer Beastie brass-rubbing possibilities. It will be similar to the Newtonmore Wildcat Trail. If anyone knows exactly where the Pool of Twenty is, or other sites linked to local stories, please let us know so that we can include them. Funding is currently being sought to set this up.
Invermoriston Recreation Field
The playing field is in a sorry state, with its rarely used football pitch and an apology of a playground. We would love to develop this area for more community use and invite your suggestions. So far, suggestions have included an improved children's play park - essential, we think- and also a tennis court, five-a-side pitch, community garden or allotments and adult exercise park. Please let us have your ideas, to GIG via Carol or Lynne.
Research into Glenmoriston's Musical Heritage
A joint venture assisted by funding from SNH with Joyce Gilbert and musical researchers Ceit Langhorne and Munro Gauld. Local Gaelic speaker, Donald MacDonald, has also been helping. It aims to produce a report detailing the extent of Glenmoriston's musical heritage and its local and wider cultural significance,recordings of local songs, poems and tunes in formats suitable for sharing on community websites, social media etc.The project will detail a range of potential options for the future use, interpretation and development of Glenmoriston's musical heritage.
