24 
BATHYMETEICAL SURVEY OF 
LOCHS OF THE LAXFORD BASIN. 
Within this basin (see Index Map, Fig. 2) five lochs were sounded by 
the staff of the Lake Survey, viz.. Lochs More, na h-Ealaidh, Stack, na 
Claise Fearna, and nam Breac. The most important of these are Lochs 
More and Stack, which drain by the river Laxford into the head of Loch 
Laxford — a sea-loch on the west coast of Sutherland. Loch na h-Ealaidh 
is directly continuous with Loch More and at the same level, while Lochs 
na Claise Fearna and nam Breac drain by independent streams falling 
into Loch Laxford on its southern shore. The area draining into these 
lochs is about 44 square miles. Lochs More and Stack are situated in a 
wild, mountainous district, many of the surrounding peaks exceeding 2000 
feet in height, and are famed for their fishing, which is preserved ; Loch 
More contains splendid trout, while Loch Stack contains also sea-trout, 
Salmo ferox, salmon, and char. 
Loch More (see Plate , VIII.). — Loch More (see Fig. 29) lies about 
6 miles from Laxford Bridge, and about 10 miles from Scourie, and 
approaches to within 2 miles of the head of Loch Merkland, in the Shin 
basin. The loch trends in a north-west and south-east direction, and 
exceeds 4 miles in length ; the width of the loch is extremely uniform, 
so that the mean breadth of the entire loch is very little less than the 
maximum breadth, which is under half a mile. The superficial area is 
about 940 acres, or nearly square miles, and the area draining into the 
loch is only about 12 square miles. The maximum depth of 316 feet was 
observed approximately near the centre of the loch. The volume of water 
contained in the loch is estimated at nearly 5000 millions of cubic feet, 
and the mean depth at 126 feet. The loch was surveyed on September 2 
to 6, 1902 ; the elevation of the lake-surface above the sea on commencing 
the survey was determined by levelling from bench-mark as being 127*65 
feet, but between September 4 and 5 the water rose about 3 inches. 
When levelled by the officers of the Ordnance Survey on July 1, 1856, 
the elevation was 127*3 feet above sea-level. 
Loch More is quite simple in conformation, the bottom sloping down 
on all sides towards the deepest part of the loch without any pronounced 
irregularity. There is a small basin exceeding 300 feet in depth in the 
middle of the loch, based on a single sounding in 316 feet. The 200-feet 
