River Conon

River Conon
The River Conon from Moy Bridge
River Conon is located in Highland
River Conon
Location of the mouth within Scottish Highlands
Location
CountryScotland
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationLoch Luichart
 • coordinates57°34′57″N 4°41′49″W / 57.5826°N 4.6969°W / 57.5826; -4.6969
Mouth 
 • location
Moray Firth
 • coordinates
57°34′53″N 4°25′02″W / 57.5813°N 4.4171°W / 57.5813; -4.4171
River Conon system
Abhainn a'
Chadha Bhuidhe
River Bran
Loch Fannich
Loch Achanalt
Fannich tunnel and dam
Kyle of Lochalsh line
Grudie Bridge
Power Station
Loch a' Chuilinn
 A832  Bridge of Grudie
Achanalt
Power Station
River Grudie
River Bran
Loch Vaich
Kyle of Lochalsh line
Loch Glascarnoch
Loch Luichart
Mossford Power Station
Loch Meig
Luichart dam
and tunnels
River Conon
Glascarnoch River
Allt a Ghlinne
Little Scatwell bridge
River Vaich
River Meig
Luichart Power Station
River Orrin
Loch Garve
Orrin Reservoir
Loch Achonachie
Orrin Power Station
Kyle of Lochalsh line
Torr Achilty
Power Station
Black Water
 A832  Orrin Bridge
 A832  Moy Bridge
Moy Island
River Orrin
Dunglass Island
Dunglass power stn
Far North Line
 A862  Conon Bridge
Garrie Island
 A835  Conon Bridge
Cromarty Firth

The River Conon (Scottish Gaelic: Conann) is a river in the Highlands of Scotland. It begins at Loch Luichart, and flows in a south-easterly direction to be joined by the River Meig at Scatwell before passing through Loch Achonachie. It is joined by the Black Water at Moy Bridge, and the River Orrin at Urray, before flowing past Conon Bridge and into the Cromarty Firth (and thence the Moray Firth and North Sea).

The river is part of the Conon hydro-electric power scheme, with dams at Loch Luichart, Loch Meig and Loch Achonachie, and power stations at Luichart and Torr Achilty. This major scheme was developed by the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board between 1946 and 1961. Prior to that, a small power station had been built at the Falls of Conon in the 1920s, and a private scheme for the Brahan Estate was commissioned in 2015 at Dunglass Island.

The river system is fished for trout and salmon, but populations of these fish have not always been as healthy as they now are. The use of traps and fixed nets in the river and in the Cromarty Firth has been the subject of legal action since 1828. The construction of hydro-electric schemes has resulted in some of the salmon spawning grounds being lost, but fish lifts at the dams and a fish pass at the Falls of Conon have enabled fish to reach the River Bran, which was previously inaccessible to them, and some 100 miles (160 km) of habitat suitable for young salmon has been developed. Although nets in the Firth have now gone, fish are predated by seals which live in the Firth, and hunt up river as far as Torr Achilty dam.

There are several islands in the river, including Moy Island, Dunglass Island and Garrie Island. The river is said to have once been the home of a water horse.[1]

  1. ^ Ash 1973, p. 436.