Explore Loch Ness

Canoeing the great glen canoe trail

The Great Glen Canoe Trail and Great Glen Way are two long-distance trails that many people tackle every year, with facilities available for walkers, bikers and paddlers along the way.  You can walk or bike the Great Glen Way or jump in canoe or kayak and paddle the Great Glen Canoe Trail over 4 or 5 days (or less if you’re up for a challenge).

For other visitors to the Loch Ness area, there are lots of other options.  During the busy summer season we offer scheduled guided canoe trips on Loch Ness from picturesque Fort Augustus at the southern end.  Also available are archery and Walk on Water (WoW) balling at The Highland Club, formerly St. Benedict’s Abbey and now a wonderful place to stay for your holidays.

 

Scheduled activities

 

Caledonian canal locks at fort augustusFort Augustus is worth a visit in its own right, with Scottish Canal’s Caledonian Canal Visitor Centre worth stopping off at for a look, and you must take a few minutes to take a photo or two of the Caledonian canal locks as they pass through the centre of the village.

We offer guided canoe or kayak trips for groups wishing to explore Loch Ness, whether just for a quick taste of what it has to offer, or a longer journey including wild camping.

We can also organise guided hill walks, gorge scrambling, mountain biking, climbing, abseiling and weaseling within touching distance of Loch Ness.

Tailor made activities

Paddle-Ness: Canoe & Kayak Equipment Hire for Loch Ness & the Great Glen Canoe Trail

If you prefer to do your own thing and want to experience Loch Ness under your own steam, you can hire a Canadian Canoe or Kayak from us.  We offer 1 day and multi-day hire options and can even deliver/ collect the equipment for you.

For a 1 day trip you could explore the northern end of the Loch, stopping for a photo of Aldourie Castle as you pass, and perhaps having lunch at The Dores Inn.  At the southern end of Loch Ness is picturesque Fort Augustus.  You can see the Abbey from the water, explore the rivers Oich and Tarff as they enter the Loch and see the site of an ancient water dwelling (Crannog) in Inchnacardoch Bay.

Multi-day adventures – if you have more time to spare you might consider paddling all or part of the Great Glen Canoe Trail from Fort William in the west to Inverness in the East.

Typically a 4 or 5 day journey by canoe, you can camp along the way, or stop off in Fort Augustus for a night in a B&B or Hotel.  It will give you an amazing sense of achievement finshing up in Inverness at the end of this 60 mile journey.

Canoe and kayak equipment hire

 

If you would like to organise something please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have.  We’d love to help out.

Want to know more about Loch Ness?

kayaking on loch nessLoch Ness is a big, deep, freshwater loch in the Scottish Highlands extending for approximately 37 kilometres (23 miles) southwest of Inverness.  Loch Ness is best known for ‘sightings’ of “Nessie”, our local friendly monster.

It is connected at the southern end by the River Oich (which can be paddled by canoe or river kayak) and a section of the Caledonian Canal to Loch Oich.  At the northern end there is the Bona Narrows, which opens out into Loch Dochfour, feeding the River Ness (also posible to paddle this by canoe or river kayak) and a further section of canal to Inverness.

Loch Ness is the second largest Scottish loch by surface area at 56 km2 (22 sq mi) after Loch Lomond, but due to its great depth, it is the largest by volume in the British Isles. Its deepest point is 230 m (755 ft), making it the second deepest loch in Scotland after Loch Morar.  It contains more fresh water than all the lakes in England and Wales combined (that’s a lot!) and is the largest body of water in the Great Glen, which runs from Inverness in the north to Fort William in the south.

Visit inverness loch ness websiteYou can find out more things to do on the Visit Inverness & Loch Ness website