296 BATHYMETRICAL SURVEY OF 



upon soundings of 104, 106, and 108 feet. Within the central 100-feet 

 basin above mentioned the bottom sinks in two places below the depth 

 of 150 feet (1) at the south-eastern end of the 100-feet basin, where 

 soundings of 156 and 157 feet were recorded; and (2) about half a 

 mile farther up the loch and towards the north-eastern shore, where 

 the deepest sounding in the loch (162 feet) was taken apparently a 

 deep hole surrounded by much shallower water. A section across the 

 loch at the position of the deepest sounding is shown in cross-section 

 E-F on Plate LXVL, and similar sections are shown in cross-section 

 C-D on Plate LXV. taken towards the head of the loch, and in cross- 

 section G-H on Plate LXVI. taken towards the foot of the loch. In 

 these three sections the deepest part of the loch is seen to lie nearer to 

 the north-eastern than to the south-western shore, but this disposition 

 does not hold good throughout the loch, for in some of the other lines 

 of soundings the deepest casts were taken towards the south-western 

 shore. The longitudinal section A-B, placed at the foot of the two 

 maps, taken along the axis of maximum depth from end to end of the 

 loch, shows how irregular the lake-floor is along this central line, and 

 many of the lines of soundings indicate undulations more or less 

 pronounced, some of which give rise to striking sinuosities in the 

 contour-lines, while others do not affect the contours, or only slightly, 

 and are therefore not so easily remarked. As a rule, shallow water 

 is found offshore, but occasionally deep soundings were taken close 

 inshore for instance, off the small promontory on the north-eastern 

 shore, 1J miles from the head of the loch, a sounding of 36 feet was 

 recorded ; farther down the same shore, off the mouth of the an Garbh- 

 allt, a sounding of 57 feet was taken ; near the pier at Shiness quarry 

 on the same shore depths of 32 and 40 feet were found ; and along the 

 opposite shore towards the foot of the loch depths of 32, 36, 37, and 

 38 feet were found here and there inshore. 



The alluvial cone at the mouth of the river Fiodhaig has already 

 been referred to, and here shallow water extends right across the loch, 

 cutting it into two deeper portions. The land has been cut into 'a 

 delta-shaped form at the head of the loch, where the river from Loch 

 a' Ghriama flows into Loch Shin. 



The areas between the consecutive contour-lines at equal intervals, 

 and the percentages to the total area of the loch, are as follows : 



to 50 feet 3260 acres 58 '5 per cent. 



50,, 100 ,, 1480 ,, 26-6 



100,, 150 814 ,, 146 

 Over 150 , 14 0'3 



5568 . 1000 



These figures show that Loch Shin is comparatively shallow, 58 per 



