Falls of Foyers

About this place

In 1787 Robert Burns stood at the lip of this gorge and left behind the verses known as «Lines on the Fall of Fyers». What Burns saw was the whole River Foyers dropping thirty metres into a wooded chasm above Loch Ness, and it was one of the set-piece sights of any Highland tour in his day. The gorge, the rock and the sheer drop are all still here. The river is not, quite: since the aluminium smelter opened at Lower Foyers in 1896, and the hydro-electric schemes that followed it, most of the water has been diverted, so on a dry day the fall is a thin white thread flickering at the bottom of the ravine. Go after heavy rain, or in the wet months of winter and spring, and you will see what Burns saw. Go in a dry summer week and you will be looking at a handsome cliff, a pleasant view and not much water. Getting here is a half-day out from Inverness along the quiet south shore of the loch, which is far prettier than the busy trunk road on the north side. Head south through the village of Dores, then follow the narrow B852 hugging the shoreline for around 35 km, roughly 45 minutes of driving with single-track stretches where you slow down and let oncoming cars pass. There is a small car park by the village shop and café in Foyers, and the path starts opposite. The Highland Council's bus 302 does run from Inverness through Dores and Inverfarigaig, but only about five times a day, Monday to Saturday and not at all on Sunday, so check the timetable before relying on it; for most families a hire car is the practical choice. The path itself deserves a word. Wooden and stone steps drop steeply through the trees to two fenced viewing platforms: the first after a few minutes, looking down on the fall from above, the second further and deeper, facing the main drop head-on. Reckon on 10 to 15 minutes down and rather longer, and more breathless, coming back up. The ground is slippery after rain, which is exactly when the falls are at their best, so wear proper shoes. There is no way to bring a pushchair or wheelchair down here; children who are steady on their feet enjoy the adventure if you keep a hand on them near the railings. Is it worth the trip? Not on its own. Treat it as one stop on a south-shore circuit: the pebble beach at Dores, where you can look down the whole length of the famous loch, then Foyers and its falls, then on to Fort Augustus if you have the afternoon. An hour at Foyers is plenty, and the rain that bores you in Inverness is precisely what makes this place worth seeing.