A long, narrow Highland loch running south-west from Glenfinnan, where a monument marks the spot Bonnie Prince Charlie raised his standard in 1745
Loch Shiel is a long freshwater loch that runs south-west from Glenfinnan for some seventeen miles into remote, roadless country, hemmed in by steep hills on both sides. At its head stands the Glenfinnan Monument, a tall column marking where Bonnie Prince Charlie raised his standard in 1745 to launch the Jacobite rising, with the visitor centre and the Glenfinnan Station Museum close by. Just above the loch the curved Glenfinnan railway viaduct is the one the Hogwarts Express crosses in the Harry Potter films, and steam trains still run over it in summer. Boat trips go down the loch from Glenfinnan in season. Beyond the head the water reaches deep into the hills of Morar, Moidart and Ardnamurchan, heading towards the coast at Acharacle.
