THE FRESH-WATER LOCHS OF SCOTLAND. 379 



LOCHS OF THE NESS BASIN. 



THE basiu of the river Ness is one of the most important of Scottish 

 river-basins, not so much on account of the area drained, which is small 

 when compared with the areas drained by the Tay, Tweed, Clyde, and 

 Spey, for instance, but because it includes within its boundaries the 

 largest body of fresh water in Scotland (Loch Ness), as well as several 

 other large lochs and numerous small ones. The basin extends from 

 the mouth of the river Ness, at the junction of the inner Moray firth 

 with the Beauly firth, in lat. 57 30' N. to lat. 57 N., south of Loch 

 Quoich, and from long. 5 30' W., west of Loch Quoich, to long. 4 10' W., 

 south-east of Inverness. The total area, as measured with the plani- 

 meter on the 1-inch Ordnance Survey maps, is about 722 square miles, 

 and of this by far the larger portion drains into Loch Ness, for the 

 area draining into the river Ness, and into Loch Ashie which flows 

 directly into the river Ness, is only about 36 square miles. With the 

 exception of Loch Ashie, the superfluent waters from all the lochs 

 within the basin find their way into Loch Ness, so that the total area 

 draining into Loch Ness is about 686 square miles. The area drained 

 by the tributary lochs, excluding Loch Ness, is about 354 square miles, 

 leaving about 332 square miles draining directly into Loch Ness, 

 independent of the other lochs. 



The principal river-systems within the basin lie to the west of Loch 

 Ness, viz. the Enrick, which flows through Glen Urquhart into Loch 

 Ness at Urquhart bay, where it is joined by the shorter river Coiltie ; * 

 the Moriston, with its tributaries the Clunie and the Loyne, which 

 flows through Glen Moriston into Loch Ness at Invermoriston ; the 

 Garry, with its tributaries the Quoich and the Kingie, which flows 

 through Glen Garry into Loch Oich at Invergarry, and thence by the 

 Oich into the head of Loch Ness at Fort Augustus. To the south of 

 Loch Ness lies the Tarn 7 , also entering Loch Ness near Fort Augustus ; 

 and to the east lies the Foyers, with its tributaries the Breinag and the 

 Fechlin, which flows into Loch Ness at Foyers, and the Farigaig, which 

 enters Loch Ness at Inverfarigaig. Finally, to the north-east of Loch 

 Ness lies the Allt Mor (or Big Burn), draining Loch Ashie, which flows 

 into the river Ness 2 or 3 miles below Inverness, while the river Ness, 

 after issuing from Loch Dochfour, at the northern end of Loch Ness, 



