There are so many special places in Scotland. It’s hard to see how such a small country fits so much into such a wee package! One such hidden gem is Glen Affric. This tucked away treasure is one of the best places to see remnant Caledonian Forest. Like many areas in Scotland, Glen Affric also has it’s fair share of lochs just crying out for a paddle boarding session!
The Main Points
- Location – Loch Beinn a’ Mheadhain, Glen Affric, Scotland
- Cost – Free access from carpark
- Conditions – Peaty Freshwater Loch
- Other users – Other paddlers
- Entry Point – Pebbly beach
- Surrounding amenities/Bathrooms- Village of Cannich 12km north east, bathroom fascilities at the Dogg Falls and River Affric car parks to the east and west of the Loch Beinn a’ Mheadhain car park
Location
Weather
Loch Beinn a’ Mheadhain is a tricky name to pronounce. It’s Gaelic and means ‘lake at middle hill’. If you’d like to learn how to pronounce it you can hear an audio at the Learn Gaelic website. It really rolls off the tongue! I love the wide array of different names in Scotland showing it’s Gaelic heritage in some places and Viking influences in others.
Aside from the options for paddle boarding in Glen Affric there are a number of walks that you can do which I really recommend. You’ll see some of the most beautiful Scottish scenery with highland streams bubbling over rocky outcrops. There is a stunning waterfall walk to Plodda Falls and of course those beautiful Scots Pines. Download a PDF Map here
We found the best place to launch was at the Beinn a’Mheadhain car park shown on the PDF Map. You can also find the Maps location in the ‘Main Points’ section above by clicking ‘Location’ if you want to enter it into a GPS. Be warned – in the satelite image you can’t really see anything as the trees cover over the car park and picnic area .
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If you haven’t yet watched part one of our SUP Safari Scotland Travel Video Series check it out here.
Gaelic is very tricky to pronounce. I loved reading Lilian Beckwith’s books where a Gaelic speaker told her, “It’s easy – you just pronounce it like it’s written!”
And one of my favourite Patrick Campbell stories is about how he was trained bilingually in Irish Gaelic – with only a textbook… Suffice to say it all went horribly wrong when his platoon were given spoken orders in Irish Gaelic!