Glensanda
| Glensanda | |
|---|---|
 Glensanda
|
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| Glensanda shown within the Lochaber area | |
| • Edinburgh | 190 miles (road) (149 via Corran Ferry) |
| • London | 567 miles (road) (526 via Corran Ferry) |
| Civil parish | |
| Council area | |
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Dialling code | 01631 |
| Police | Scottish |
| Fire | Scottish |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| EU Parliament | Scotland |
| UK Parliament | |
| Scottish Parliament | |
Glensanda (Old Norse, the glen of the sandy river) was a Viking settlement at the mouth of Glen Sanda on the Morvern peninsula within south west Lochaber, overlooking the Isle of Lismore and Loch Linnhe in the western Highlands of Scotland.
Glensanda Castle (Caisteal Na Gruagaich (Maiden's Castle); overlooks the mouth of the Glensanda River which tumbles down 400 metres along its 5-mile course from 'Caol Bheinn' into Loch Linnhe. The castle was the main base of the Macleans of Kingairloch (Kingerloch) since the 15th century, but the population fell from 500 to zero after 1812 when they emigrated to Pictou, Nova Scotia.
The remoteness of the Glensanda settlement is such that there are no road, rail, or marked footway links across the granite mountain, moor, heather and peat bog of the private Glensanda estate. The only practical access is by boat from the shores of Loch Linnhe.
Since 1982 the 2,400 hectare Glensanda Estate has been the home of the Glensanda Superquarry created by Foster Yeoman, since acquired by the Aggregate Industries group, which mines the Meall na h-Easaiche mountain, shipping up to 6,000,000 tons of granite aggregates all over the world annually, and with reserves for up to 100 years. To minimise visual impact from the coast the quarry is sited a mile inland, and cut down into the mountain 1,600 feet above sea level. Granite is extracted via a "Glory Hole" and conveyor belt, a pioneering development in alternative quarrying technology.
Little is known of the glen before the Viking age when it was part of Dál Riata, a Gaelic over-kingdom of the western seaboard of Scotland, in the late 6th and early 7th century. According to Professor William J. Watson the Morvern district was formerly known as Kinelvadon, from the Cenél Báetáin, a subdivision of the Cenél Loairn.
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Wikipedia