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Abriachan Cave

Aberiachan, Abriachan, Allt Killianan, Invernessshire.

Cave, Destroyed.

The Cave of Abriachan or Obriachan. Four miles from Donachroy (or Dunaincroy), 10 minutes ramble from the edge of the woods is a great group of rocks with a platform 100 ft (30 m) above the loch with broken stone down to moss and heather leading to the road. At the back of the platform is a cave 16-20 ft by 10-12 ft high sheltered by a rugged corner to the south (Inwards 1870).

DISCOVERY OF A MINERALOGICAL CAVERN The improvement of the road from this town [Inverness] to Fort Augustus has led to the discovery of a cavern near Abriachan about seven miles from Inverness partly filled with that peculiar deposition from limestone called alabaster or more properly stalactite and stalagmite. The entrance which is well seen from the road has the appearance of a door sloping backwards with the angle of the mountain which the cave penetrates for about twenty one feet in a horizontal direction varying in height from six to ten or twelve feet and from one to two yards in breadth the roof in one part has a domelike form composed of shattered rock through which water oozes At the extremity of the cavern there is an opening in the rock running inwards two or three yards completely encrusted with stalactite together with pieces depending from the roof the whole is formed by water containing carbonate of lime with carbonic acid trickling through the crevices (The Chemist and also the Inverness Courier, 1846).

The removal of stones and rock from the side of Loch-Ness road, near Abriachan [in 1846], led to the discovery of a cavern largely filled with stalactite and] stalagmite. The cavern extended twenty-one feet inward, varying in height from ten to twelve feet, and from one to two yards in breadth.

A spar cave adjacent to Aberiachan, and to the road from Inverness to Fort Augustus, was discovered not many years ago (c. 1846); measures about 21 feet in length, from 6 to 12 feet in height, and from 3 to 6 feet in width, and makes an interesting display of stalactites and stalagmites (Ordnance Gazetteer).

The Inverness cavern is at a place called Abriachan about seven miles from Inverness and was discovered by the improvement of a road leading from Inverness to Fort Augustus. The entrance which is visible from the road has the appearance of a door sloping backwards with the angle of the mountain which the cave penetrates for about 21 feet in a horizontal direction varying in height from six to ten or twelve feet and from one to two yards in breadth. The roof in one part has a dome like form composed of shattered rock through which water oozes. At the extremity of the cavern there is an opening in the rock running inwards two or three yards completely encrusted with stalactites together with pieces depending from the roof the whole is formed by water containing carbonate of lime with carbonic acid trickling through the crevices. Those hanging from the top are common stalactites and the flat masses formed on the floor are termed stalagmites. Some portions of the flat pieces present the appearance of small prisms in combination The act of cutting through the rock has shaken off a great part of the deposit. Scattered among stones large pieces have been found of different kinds some of the long masses varying in size from half an inch to three inches in diameter. Two specimens found at the edge of Loch Ness are in length eight inches each two and a half inches thick and weigh six pounds they are perforated through the entire length by a small hole which appears to have served as a duct for the carbonated water. The colour is of a yellowish white When fractured the long round pieces appear formed of distinct layers slightly but beautifully varied in colour and spreading in circles from a centre. (The Artizan, 1846)

The greatest tourist attraction of the area [Abriachan] was a complex of caves with incredible stalagmites and stalactites. Unfortunately, the caves were destroyed to make way for the road up from Loch Ness [after 1870]. (h2g2.com)

Alternative Names: Abriachan (Cave of),Cave of Abriachan, Obriachan Cave, Obriachan (Cave of),Cave of Obriachan

Notes: Aberiachan, a rivulet on the confines of the parishes of Inverness and Urquhart, Inverness-shire. It traverses romantic scenery; makes a succession of falls, from 10 to 30 feet in leap; and enters the lower part of Loch Ness, about 9 miles from Inverness.

Abriachan is a very small, quiet village between Inverness and Drumnadrochit, situated in a hanging valley high in the hills above Loch Ness. The name 'Abriachan' is Gaelic and means 'the place where the deer comes to drink', or 'the brown hills where the burns meet', depending on who you ask. Abriachan's hillsides are covered with old ruins which are now abandoned.