Bruce takes time out from work up North for a short walk in Corrieshalloch Gorge, Louis Philippe wasn't keen on crossing the Bridge so waited in the Car Park and sung this little tune.
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Corrieshalloch Gorge can be found 12 miles south east of
Ullapool. It is a spectacularly deep, mile long box canyon through which the
River Droma descends towards Loch Broom, en route forming the 150ft high Falls
of Measach. There are few outdoor attractions in the Highlands best seen after
heavy rain, but Corrieshalloch Gorge is certainly one of them, and when the
river is in spate the falls produce a mist which drifts along the gorge.
The gorge is accessed from the south, from a car park a
short distance west along the Dundonnell and Gairloch road. The path brings you
to the south end of the Corrieshalloch Suspension Bridge. This was built to
allow tourists a better view of the gorge in 1874 and designed by the eminent
engineer Sir John Fowler. Sir John is perhaps better known for his role in
helping design the Forth Bridge, on which construction began nine years later
in 1883. His bridge over the Corrieshalloch Gorge is more modest in scale, with
a span of 82ft, but it has nonetheless stood the test of time.
The bridge gives you your first real sense of what you have
come to see, and if you have any sort of fear of heights, crossing it is a
challenge. A few feet out onto the bridge you suddenly become aware of the drop
of some 200ft into the gorge below, and the bridge itself has an interesting
tendency to sway as you walk along it. This is one reason why the number of
visitors allowed on the bridge is limited to six at any one time.
From the bridge you follow a path west among trees parallel
to the north side of the gorge. This brings you to a viewing platform
cantilevered out half way over the gorge from the north side. This is a more
recent addition than the bridge. It offers stupendous views of the Falls of
Measach to the east: and provides another stern test for those with vertigo. On
the way back to the car park you can choose to return the way you came or,
after recrossing the bridge, you can follow a path which takes a circular
route, leading first along the south side of the gorge to another fine
viewpoint.
The Corrieshalloch Gorge was not carved out by the river
that flows through it today. Instead it was probably formed towards the end of
the last ice age when the glacier that formed Loch Broom started to melt and
large volumes of water flowed beneath the base of the glacier, carving out the
rock below.
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| Looking down from the Bridge |
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| Waterfall from the Bridge |
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| River Droma heading to Loch Broom |
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| Falls of Measach |
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Falls of Measach from the viewing platform
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