Loch Enoch

Loch Enoch lies in the granite hills of Galloway, east of Merrick and south of Mullwharchar. The loch fills several linked basins and holds small islands and sandy shores. Sharp granite sand from its beaches once sharpened knives and scythes across the region. Purple moor grass and heather grow around its edges, giving the catchment a purple haze in summer.

The loch’s water turned acidic by 1800, and trout there grew stunted. J. McBain recorded fish missing parts of their tails and fins in 1929. The last trout was caught in 1899. Industrial fumes made the water worse after 1940, and by the 1950s no fish remained. In 1994 three thousand trout were returned, and acidity has since fallen slowly from a pH of 4.3 in 1978 to 4.9 in 2003.

Visitors walk the granite slopes above the loch and see its clear, shallow waters. The silver sand beaches still show signs of past collection. Heather and moor grass sway around the shore, and the outflow feeds Loch Doon and the River Doon further north. The loch remains relatively poor in nutrients, keeping its waters clean and bright.