Falls of Lora

Hi All,
Today is the first day of our holiday in Portsonachan which is situated on the south shore of Loch Awe. From our Log cabin we could see the the northern shore and this was where we would head to start the day. We soon skirted around the most eastern part of the loch and after passing through the village of Lochawe we drove through the Pass of Brander and eventually arrived on the banks of Loch Etive. For the most part Loch Etive is inaccessible by car but its beauty can still be admired from boats that take passengers up the loch towards Ben Nevis. The photo below shows one of the boats.

We stayed a while here and wondered around the shores of the loch and wished we could take a trip on the boat. However that would be impossible as we had our pet dog Buzby with us and did not want to leave him in the car for the length of time the trip would take. If one has a pet one needs to make sacrifices.We finally left Taynuilt and arrived at Connel from where we could view and photograph the Falls of Lora. See photo of the Falls below.
I guess you are unimpressed, well I guess I would be too. So, let me explain about the falls. Apparently the falls are a phenomena in as much as they are tidal and quite unique. They occur where Loch Etive empties into the Firth of Lorne which is in effect the Atlantic ocean. So when the tide drops, the water that comes out of Loch Etive, cascades over the Falls of Lora. Obviously from the photo you can see that we were there at the wrong time, but if you are interested the following link will show you more about it.
Just below the falls, at Connel, a bridge spans the width of Loch Etive and is quite impressive. By now we were getting a bit peckish so we made our way over the bridge to the Locknel Hotel which we had seen on the other side of the loch. We had a lovely Sunday roast while watching the boats go past.


Full of grub, we headed north and then cut back up a mountain track that would lead us down to the other side of Loch Etive on the opposite bank to Taynuilt. Half way up the mountain as we were passing through a particularly beautiful area of mixed woodland and glades we stopped to walk the dog and stretch our own legs. While we were walking along the remote track we came to a tree with a pair of boots nailed to the trunk. We looked at it unable to decipher what it meant but it gave us an uneasy feeling, so we walked back to the car and carried on with our journey. A mile or so later we crested the mountain pass and we were rewarded with the spectacular view of Loch Etive that you can see below. The camera doesn't do it justice but we still have the memory.

When we reached the northern Shore of the loch we came to Ardchattan Priory Gardens where we spent a pleasant hour strolling around the grounds. We were the only ones there and the peace and solitude was amazing. By now we were both tired so we followed the loch side road back to Connel and then retraced our journey back to the lodge. We were tired but well satisfied with a great day out.

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There again,perhaps you'd like to see what an old man can do with a red hot poker and a lump of wood this is the link to click.see more photos of the falls