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Kinlochleven
probably owes its existence to the British Aluminium Company
which built an aluminium smelter here. There is an abundant
supply of fast flowing water and therefore of cheap electricity
which is necessary for the smelting of Aluminium. The industrial
side of the village is now over and it has been reinventing
itself as a top walking and climbing centre, and
successfully so too. The old factory building that was left when
most were demolished, has been turned into a climbing wall
centre including a good ice wall.
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Kinlochleven
sits at the head of Loch Leven as its name would suggest and
the road is now very quiet since the building of the
Ballachulish bridge far to the south which now spans Loch
Leven at its mouth. It is surrounded by mountains on three
sides with the Glencoe range to the south and the Mamores
to the east and north.
The
Mamores in particular offer hill walkers some of the best
walking in Europe with all its interconnecting mountain
paths. There is even a spectacular waterfall in the village
itself called the grey Mares Tail which is a great site
after a lot of rain. |
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courtesy of Imperial College London |
The
West Highland Way, passes through Kinlochleven. As
most people walk the Way south to north, then this is the last
stop before the path goes up over the Mammores to Fort William.
To the south lies the tortuous Devils Staircase which has to be
negotiated often after many miles of walking towards
Kinlochleven from as far away as
Bridge of Orchy.
Therefore
as you would expect there are hotels, bed and Breakfasts,
camping, pubs, restaurants and shops which cater for the
visitors whether they are just walking the mountains climbing at
Glen Coe or walking the West Highland Way.
The town is also a fine base for exploring surrounding areas
such as Fort William and Glen Coe. Loch Leven which it sits, is
generally a fairly benign loch and good for angling, canoeing
and other types of watersports. |