Yes. It is a sea loch that reaches the sea at Connel, north of Oban, and it rises and falls on the tide along its whole length. The water is salt, not fresh, and the tide is the first thing to check before you plan a swim.

What are the Falls of Lora and can you swim there?

The Falls of Lora are tidal rapids at the narrow mouth of the loch at Connel, formed where a large body of water is forced through a constriction over a rock sill on each tide. They are a whitewater feature that specialist paddlers seek out deliberately. They are not a swim, and this page is not about them.

How do you get to the head of Loch Etive?

By the Glen Etive road, which leaves the A82 at Kings House and runs about 22 kilometres to the loch. It is single-track throughout and there is no through route — the road ends at the water and you return the way you came.

Is there mobile signal at Loch Etive?

No. Upper Glen Etive is a recognised blackspot and you should plan on having no signal from the point you leave the A82 until you return to it. Leave word of your plan with someone before you set off.

Wild Swimming

Loch Etive — Head of the Loch

Loch Etive is a sea loch, not a freshwater one, and that single fact governs everything about swimming in it. It runs a little over thirty kilometres from Connel up into the mountains, reaching around 150 metres deep in places, and it fills and empties twice a day through a narrow mouth. The head of the loch is where the Glen Etive road finally stops: a turning circle, a derelict pier, and a shingle shore where the river arrives. Beinn Trilleachan and the pale sweep of the Etive Slabs stand directly above the water. Very few people swim here, and the reason is logistics rather than quality — it is a long way in, there is no signal, and the water is salt and cold in a way that rewards planning over enthusiasm.

Quick facts

Type: Sea Loch
Region: Glencoe & Lochaber
Grid ref: NN 108 449
Entry: Gravel / pebble
Depth: Deep (over head near entry)
Summer water temp: 8–14°C
Midges: Very high
Dogs: On lead only

Best months

Key hazards

tidal water — the loch fills and empties on the tide
cold water shock
salt water and deep water within a short distance of the shore
no mobile signal anywhere in upper Glen Etive
remote — the nearest help is a long single-track drive away
midges June–September

Getting there

Turn off the A82 at Kings House onto the Glen Etive road and follow it roughly 22 kilometres to the end. It is single-track with passing places for its whole length, it carries far more traffic than it was built for in summer, and the passing places are for passing rather than for parking. There is a parking area at the road end by the loch. Access rights under the Scottish Outdoor Access Code apply, but this is stalking and estate ground either side of the glen — take the usual seasonal care and keep dogs under close control. There is no shop, no toilet and no water tap anywhere past the A82.

Safety

Check the tide before you go in and plan around slack water rather than the run of it — a tidal loch moves a large volume of water through a narrow entrance, and the current is the hazard that catches freshwater swimmers out. Treat the depth as unknown: the loch reaches around 150 metres and you should assume you are out of your depth quickly rather than expecting to wade back. There is no mobile signal in upper Glen Etive, so an emergency here is one you have to solve yourself or drive out of. Do not swim alone, carry a tow float, and tell someone your plan and your expected return before you leave the A82. Midges are severe on still summer evenings.

Best for

experienced cold-water swimmers comfortable with tidal conditions
a swim built into a Beinn Trilleachan day
a Cadderlie bothy overnight on the north shore

Nearby

Current conditions

Daylight Today

17h 07mwalking daylight

Sunrise: 05:39
Sunset: 21:13
Civil dawn: 04:52
Civil dusk: 21:59

NOAA Solar Calculator · 10 August 2026

Common questions

Is Loch Etive tidal?: Yes. It is a sea loch that reaches the sea at Connel, north of Oban, and it rises and falls on the tide along its whole length. The water is salt, not fresh, and the tide is the first thing to check before you plan a swim.
What are the Falls of Lora and can you swim there?: The Falls of Lora are tidal rapids at the narrow mouth of the loch at Connel, formed where a large body of water is forced through a constriction over a rock sill on each tide. They are a whitewater feature that specialist paddlers seek out deliberately. They are not a swim, and this page is not about them.
How do you get to the head of Loch Etive?: By the Glen Etive road, which leaves the A82 at Kings House and runs about 22 kilometres to the loch. It is single-track throughout and there is no through route — the road ends at the water and you return the way you came.
Is there mobile signal at Loch Etive?: No. Upper Glen Etive is a recognised blackspot and you should plan on having no signal from the point you leave the A82 until you return to it. Leave word of your plan with someone before you set off.

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