Loch Beannach

Loch Beannach is a small V-shaped loch in the Assynt area of Sutherland, Highland. It lies two miles west of Loch Assynt and three miles northeast of Lochinver, within the Assynt-Coigach National Scenic Area. The loch sits in a landscape of hummocky ground, peat bog and rocky knolls, overlooked by the triple peaks of Quinag to the northwest. A stream flows from the loch into Loch Bad nan Aighean directly to the south. The ground around the loch is uneven, with patches of peat bog and water between bare rocky knolls. The northeastern part of the loch is a Site of Special Scientific Interest for its Downy Birch woodland on eight islands. This woodland once covered the area widely and remains a prime example. The site overlaps with the Assynt Lochs SSSI, known for its black-throated divers, one of the nesting species here. Other nesting birds include common gull, European golden plover, meadow pipit, red grouse, skylark, barn swallow and wheatear. The water-lily Nuphar pumila grows around the loch’s edges. To the east of the loch stands a former crofting township cleared in the 19th century, its name unknown. It contains eleven former crofts of varying sizes, with evidence of lazy bed cultivation still visible. A stream from Loch an t-Sabhail nearby powered a corn-mill, and upstream remains of a dam can be seen. The loch’s quiet waters and surrounding hills offer a place to observe rare plants and birds in a remote Highland setting.