Fionn Loch

Fionn Loch lies three kilometres southeast of Lochinver in the Assynt district of Sutherland. It is a shallow freshwater loch shaped like an irregular oval, stretching along a north-west to south-east line. The surrounding area belongs to the Assynt-Coigach National Scenic Area, one of forty such protected landscapes in Scotland. Nearby hills include Suilven, Cùl Mòr and Cùl Beag, all rising above seven hundred metres. The loch sits in a basin once filled by the larger Loch Suilven, now divided into Cam Loch, Loch Veyatie and Fionn Loch. The drainage system feeds the loch from rivers and smaller lochs to the east and south. River Ledbeg drains Loch Urigill and Loch Borralan before reaching Fionn Loch. Loch Veyatie empties through Uidh Fheàrna, a slow channel, into the northern end of Fionn Loch. Around the loch lie many smaller lochans and the larger Loch Sionascaig to the south. Inverpolly Forest borders the southern shore while Drumrunie Forest lies to the north-west. A walking route starts from Inverkirkaig and climbs to the bealach south of the loch. The path passes Kirkaig Falls before reaching the open moorland above Fionn Loch. From the ridge the view stretches over the loch to the steep sides of Suilven and across the scattered lochans. The silence is broken only by wind and the occasional call of a bird. The remoteness and wide horizons make the walk a quiet contrast to busier places.