6
Look carefully at the bog at point 11 and you could see several different kinds of sphagnum moss. Each has a keynote colour, whether wine- red, buff or green. Pressed together over centuries and more, these mosses are the raw material for peat. They form a living skin at the bog surface and hold tiny life forms within their cells. More obvious creatures are the dragonflies (some scarce, such as the northern emerald) that patrol Beinn Eighe’s bogs. Our high rainfall on the west coast helps these bogs thrive, and it also makes the west coast native woods different to the drier forests of the east. Those in the west have many more moisture- loving plants, such as mosses, to soften their tree shapes.
Essential information
Beinn Eighe NNR lies at the southern end of Loch Maree in Wester Ross, near the village of Kinlochewe. You can reach it from both the A832 and A896 roads. The visitor centre is open from April to October, but the toilets and trails are open all year round. Three all-abilities trails leave from the centre. The self-guided woodland and mountain trails leave from the side of the A832.
OS maps
Explorer 433 (Torridon – Beinn Eighe & Liathach)
Landranger 19 (Gairloch & Ullapool)
Trail length Beginning at the lochside car park, the Woodland Trail runs for roughly 1.5 km upslope and back.
Terrain
The trail surface is rough and can be muddy in places after rain. The trail climbs to 100 metres and includes some steep sections with rocky steps, but it’s fairly easy to walk. There are several benches along the route where you can pause, rest and enjoy the view.
Dogs
Please follow the Scottish Outdoor Access Code and local guidance at the reserve. Keep dog(s) under close control or on a short lead at sensitive times and comply with any notices you see. A short lead is taken to be two metres, and ‘under close control’ means the dog responds to your commands and is kept close at heel.
Nearby natural attractions
More than 60 scattered islands in Loch Maree form a National Nature Reserve and display the nearest thing to natural woodland left in Britain. You can admire the beauty of this fragment of the original Caledonian pinewood from various viewing points around the loch. Look and listen out too for black- throated divers in summer – they breed on the islands and their eerie cries echo around the shores. With a bit of luck, you may even spot a sea eagle soaring over the islands.
Torridon Estate is managed by the National Trust for Scotland (NTS) and boasts some of the most spectacular mountain scenery in Scotland. The estate includes the famous mountains of Liathach (1,054m / 3,456ft) – with its seven tops – and Beinn Alligin (985m / 3,230ft), making it a major attraction for walkers, geologists and naturalists. An NTS countryside centre at Torridon features an audio- visual presentation and there’s a deer museum, as well as nearby herds of red deer and Highland cattle.
Further information
You can contact SNH on 01445 760 254. You can also download a leaflet about the reserve at www.nnr-
scotland.org.uk/beinn-eighe/
Beinn Eighe is one of 47 NNRs in Scotland. Find out more at www.nnr-
scotland.org.uk
www.snh.gov.uk 43
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68