Glensanda

Glensanda (Old Norse, the glen of the sandy river) was a Viking settlement at the mouth of Glen Sanda on the Morvern peninsula within south west Lochaber, overlooking the island of Lismore and Loch Linnhe in the western Highlands of Scotland. Glensanda Castle (Caisteal Na Gruagaich (Maiden's Castle); overlooks the mouth of the Glensanda River which tumbles down 400 metres along its 5-mile (8-kilometre) course from 'Caol Bheinn' into Loch Linnhe. The castle was the main base of the Macleans of Kingairloch (Kingerloch) since the 15th century, but the population fell from 500 to zero after 1812 when they emigrated to Pictou, Nova Scotia. The remoteness of the Glensanda settlement is such that there are no road, rail, or marked footway links across the granite mountain, moor, heather and peat bog of the private Glensanda estate. The only practical access is by boat from the shores of Loch Linnhe. Since 1982 the 2,400-hectare (5,900-acre) Glensanda Estate has been the home of the Glensanda Superquarry created by Foster Yeoman, since acquired by the Aggregate Industries group, which mines the Meall na h-Easaiche mountain, shipping up to 6,000,000 tons of granite aggregates all over the world annually, and with reserves for up to 100 years. To minimise visual impact from the coast the quarry is sited 1 mi (2 km) inland, and cut down into the mountain 1,600 ft (500 m) above sea level. Granite is extracted via a "Glory Hole" and conveyor belt, a pioneering development in alternative quarrying technology.