LOCH

See also:

• LOCH AWE

AWE  , the longest freshwater lake in Scotland, situated in mid-Argyllshire, 116 ft. above the sea, with an area of nearly 16 sq. m . It has a N.E. to S.W. direction and is fully 23 M. long from Kilchurn Castle to Ford, its breadth varying from a of a mile to 3 M. at its upper end, where it takes the shape of a crescent, one arm of which runs towards Glen Orchy, the other to the point where the river Awe leaves the lake . The two ends of the loch are wholly dissimilar in character, the scenery of the upper extremity being majestic, while that of the lower half is pastoral and tame . Of its numerous islands the best-known is Inishail, containing ruins of a church and convent, which was suppressed at the Reformation . At the extreme north-eastern end of the lake, on an islet which, when the water is low, becomes part of the mainland, stand the imposing ruins of Kilchurn Castle . Its romantic surroundings have made this castle a favourite subject of the landscape painter . Dalmally, about 2 M. from the loch, is one of the pleasantest villages in the High-lands and has a great vogue in midsummer . The river Awe, issuing from the north-western horn of the loch, affords excellent trout and salmon fishing .