Glenmoriston Beastie Trail

Glenmoriston Beastie Trail is a self-guided walking and driving tour of the Glenmoriston area providing an easy and fun way to discover the main landmarks, historical features and viewpoints of the glen while also collecting "brass rubbings" of 12 special beasties that have strong connections to the local area.

The souvenir guidebook provides lots of interesting information about the landmarks that form the trail and about each of the beasties that can be found at each location. The book is supplied with a souvenir pencil and sharpener to enable the brass rubbings to be collected to give you a unique memento of your visit to Glenmoriston.

Full details are available on The Beastie Trail page.

Telford Bridge & Moriston Falls

A picturesque spot and a sightseeing must for tourists passing by on the A82 the River Moriston and the historic stone bridge that spans the falls make for a stunning focal point in the heart of the village of Invermoriston. The stone bridge, designed by the great Scottish engineer Thomas Telford, was opened in 1813 and carried all traffic across this section of the river until the current bridge superceded it in 1933.

Both kayakers and salmon can often be seen leaping over and playing around in the white waters of the falls, especially on days when the hydro dam, which is located a few miles upstream, releases extra water to aid both salmon and kayakers in their converse journeys through the churning waters. Downstream from the road bridge The Summer House is an equally striking sight perched on the wooded cliff high above the bubbling river and the short walk through Falls Wood to this iconic landmark is a rewarding way to pass some time.

St Columba's Well

The origins of St Columba's Well date back almost 1,500 years to the time of The Picts when, around 565AD, St Columba passed through Glenmoriston on his way from his base on the island of Iona to visit Bridei in Inverness as part of his mission to convert the Pictish race to Christianity.

While in the area where Invermoriston is now located, St Columba established a church and also blessed the local well, the water of which had previously been feared by the locals as poisonous and possesed by evil spirits. After St Columba's holy intervention the well water became pure and he used it as a font in which to baptise those who he converted to Christianity. Following his departure the well water was then said to be left with mystical healing properties.

MacKenzie Cairn

Standing beside the A887 around 5 miles west of Torgoyle Bridge the memorial cairn of Roderick MacKenzie is a highly visible landmark passed by hundreds of motorists every day. MacKenzie was a fugitive of the Battle of Culloden and an officer in the army of Prince Charles.

Legend has it that MacKenzie bore a striking resemblance to the prince himself and when, in 1746, MacKenzie was overpowered by the troops of the Duke of Cumberland on the spot where his cairn now stands he succumbed to them and with his dying breath purported to be the prince and in doing so MacKenzie managed to stall the pursuit of the prince long enough to aid his escape.

Finlay's Footprints

At Torgoyle, on the A887, can be found the miraculously indelible footprints of Rev. Finlay Munro in the form of two foot-shaped patches of bare earth where grass and other vegetation will not grow. Finlay was a travelling preacher who visited Glenmoriston in 1827 and stood to preach to a local crowd of onlookers on the spot where his footprints seemingly remain to this day.

It is said that during his sermon that day the reverend was heckled and insulted by some catholics from nearby Glengarry and in retort Finlay proclaimed that the very ground on which he stood would forever more bear witness to the truth of what he stated and his footprints are still there to be seen.

Trees For Life, Dundreggan Estate

Glenmoriston is home to Trees For Life's Dundreggan Estate, their flagship example of rewilding in action. Dundreggan is a base for volunteer groups throughout the year and has its own onsite tree nursery. Visitors are welcome to explore the short network of woodland walks, and volunteers are always being sought.

There are plans afoot to expand the facilities at Dundreggan with a brand new Rewilding Centre which is expected to open in 2022 and which will increase their ability to educate and inform visitors as well as providing better facilities for staff and volunteers engaged in the rewilding projects of the estate.

Kayaking

Water is a prevalant feature in the landscape of the Highlands with lochs, rivers and watefalls in abundance making it unsurprising that water sports are commonplace also. For those with a penchant for white water kayaking, the River Moriston is highly regarded as a challenging and exhilarating natural playground.

Once per week through the summer season extra water is released along the course of the river by the operators of Dundreggan Hydro Dam and kayakers can often be seen taking advantage of the faster flow. The kayaking on the river is of competition standard and there are also organised kayaking events that take place on the river throughout the year such as the Wet West Paddlefest and the Moriston Enduro.