The River Beauly ( gd, Abhainn nam Manach, ) is a river in the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland S ...

, about 15 km west of the city of Inverness. It is about 25 km long, beginning near the village of

Struy Struy ( gd, An t-Srùigh or gd, Sruidh) is a small village at the end of Glen Strathfarrar, about 15 km south-west of Beauly in the Highland council area of Scotland. Description The confluence of the River Farrar and the River Glass is ...

, at the confluence of the

River Farrar Farrar may refer to: * Cape Farrar, a headland on the Boothia Peninsula in Nunavut, Canada * Farrar, Georgia, a US unincorporated community * Farrar, Iowa, a US unincorporated community * Farrar Landing, Michigan, an unincorporated community * F ...

and the River Glass (). The river meanders as it flows east, passing to the south of the village of

Beauly Beauly ( ; ; gd, A' Mhanachainn) is a village in the Highland area, on the River Beauly, west of Inverness by the Far North railway line. The town is historically within Kilmorack Parish of the Scottish County of Inverness. The land around B ...

and into the

Beauly Firth The Beauly Firth ( gd, Linne Fharair) is a firth in northern Scotland. It is the outlet for both the River Beauly and River Ness. The Beauly Firth is bounded at its western end by the town of Beauly and its eastern by Inverness, where it empties ...

. The river was first bridged in about 1817, when Thomas Telford constructed the five arched Lovat Bridge about 1 km south west of Beauly.Struy Bridge Struy Bridge
Sabre Roads, Retrieved 25 March 2017 This bridge carried the A9, the main route north, until the

Kessock Bridge The Kessock Bridge ( gd, Drochaid Cheasaig) carries the A9 trunk road across the Beauly Firth at Inverness, Scotland. Description The Kessock Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge across the Beauly Firth, an inlet of the Moray Firth, between the ...

was opened in 1982. A railway bridge across the river on the outskirts of Beauly was built in the 1860s to carry the Inverness & Ross-shire Railway (now the

Far North Line The Far North Line is a rural railway line entirely within the Highland area of Scotland, extending from Inverness to Thurso and Wick. As the name suggests, it is the northernmost railway in the United Kingdom. The line is entirely single-trac ...

). Another road bridge, near Kilmorack, was built in the 20th century. Kilmorack Power Station PH-1

The river is part of the

Affric-Beauly hydro-electric power scheme The Affric / Beauly hydro-electric power scheme for the generation of hydro-electric power is located in the western Highlands of Scotland. It is based around Glen Strathfarrar, Glen Cannich and Glen Affric, and Strathglass further downstream. ...

, with dams and power stations at

Aigas Aigas (Scottish Gaelic: ''Àigeis'', meaning "Place of the Gap") is a small hamlet in the Highland Council area of Scotland. It is 5 miles (8 km) southwest of Beauly and 15 miles (24 km) west of Inverness, on the north bank of the Rive ...

and

Kilmorack Kilmorack ( gd, Cill Mhòraig) is a small hamlet in Inverness-shire, in the Highlands of Scotland and now in the Highland Council area. It is situated on the north bank of the River Beauly, west of Beauly and west of the city of Inverness. The ...

. Both have 20MW generators and include

fish ladder A fish ladder, also known as a fishway, fish pass, fish steps, or fish cannon is a structure on or around artificial and natural barriers (such as dams, locks and waterfalls) to facilitate diadromous fishes' natural migration as well as move ...

s to allow salmon to pass, the Aigas fish ladder is open to visitors in the summer. Eilean Aigas is an island in the river.

References

External links

Affric / Beauly hydro scheme
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Scottish and Southern Energy SSE plc (formerly Scottish and Southern Energy plc) is a multinational energy company headquartered in Perth, Scotland. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. SSE operates in the United Kingdom and ...

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Geography of Inverness