THE FRESH-WATER LOCHS OF SCOTLAND. 87 



LOCHS OF THE EACHAIG BASIN. 



THE only loch within this basin (see Index Map, Fig. 9) is Loch Eck, 

 which drains by the river Eachaig into the Holy loch, an arm of the 

 Clyde estuary, and is one of the best-known in the western Highlands, the 

 coach-road from Dunoon to Strachur running along its eastern shore, and 

 carrying numerous tourists during the season. The head of the loch 

 is distant about 4 miles from the shores of Loch Fyne at Strachur, while 

 the foot of the loch is distant about 3 miles from the head of the Holy loch. 

 The scenery of the district is very fine, most of the hills on both sides 

 of the loch exceeding 1000 feet, and some of them exceeding 2000 feet, in 

 height, culminating in Beinn Bheula (2527 feet) at the north end of the 

 loch, and Beinn Mhor (2433 feet) to the west of the lower portion of the 

 loch. The fishing in the loch includes salmon and sea-trout, as well 

 as loch-trout. 



Loch Eck (see Plate XXXIII.). Loch Eck partakes of the elongate 

 character of many Highland lochs, trending nearly north and south on the 

 whole, but with a curve in the outline towards the upper end, which causes 

 the extreme northern portion to trend in a north-west direction. It is 

 6 miles in length, with a maximum breadth of over one-third of a mile, 

 the mean breadth being about a quarter of a mile. The superficial area is 

 about If square miles, while the area draining into the loch is nearly 

 40 square miles. The shore-line is sinuous, while numerous streams have 

 cut their way into the sides of the mountains, and empty themselves into 

 the loch on both sides. The principal inflowing stream is the river Cur, 

 which enters at the upper end, draiuing with its tributaries the mountain- 

 slopes at the head of the basin. The loch is fairly deep, the maximum 

 depth observed being 139 feet, while the mean depth exceeds 50 feet, the 

 volume of water being estimated at 2381 millions of cubic feet. The 

 25-feet contour is continuous from end to end of the loch, but the 50-feet 

 basin is divided into two portions by a slight shoaling just south of the 

 narrows at Coirantee, the deepest sounding on the shoaling being 46 feet. 

 The 75-feet contour is cut up into four portions : the largest and deepest 

 is nearly 2 miles in length, and is distant little more than half a mile from 

 the upper extremity ; the others are of small extent, one close to the 

 northern end, based on a sounding in 79 feet; a second about Ij miles 

 from the southern end, based on soundings in 75 and 81 feet; and a third 



