Paddleboarding spots in Highland
186 launch spots across Highland
Every mapped spot in Highland
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Launch spots
Showing 24 of 186
RiverRiver Garry put-in (upper), Faichem
Highland, ScotlandOne of two closely spaced put-in points mapped on the River Garry near Faichem, just downstream of the Invergarry dam. The stretch is used for the Garry's dam-released Grade 3 to 4 whitewater run down to Invergarry.
SeaFishertown put-in (Nairn)
Highland, ScotlandA slipway in Fishertown, the old fishing quarter of Nairn on the Moray Firth, close to where the River Nairn meets the firth. Nairn's beaches lie either side of the harbour, sand to the east and rockier ground to the west.
SeaErbusaig Ferry Slipway
Highland, ScotlandThis concrete slipway lies on Erbusaig Bay, part of Loch Alsh near Kyle of Lochalsh, close to the hamlets of Erbusaig and Badicaul. Historic Environment Scotland records a nineteenth-century ferry slipway on this site, part of an older crossing towards Skye that predated the vehicle-ferry terminal at Kyle of Lochalsh which itself ran until the Skye Bridge opened in 1995.
SeaFeorlig put-in
Highland, ScotlandThis put-in is at Upper Feorlig, near Ose on the shore of Loch Caroy, an inner arm of Loch Bracadale on Skye's west coast. Loch Bracadale itself is a wide sea loch that opens to the Atlantic between the Duirinish and Minginish peninsulas.
RiverRiver Garry slipway, Faichem
Highland, ScotlandA slipway on the River Garry at Faichem, on the A87 a short distance below the Invergarry dam. The Garry is a dam-controlled river with Grade 3 to 4 rapids, kept reliably paddleable by scheduled hydro releases roughly between March and October, several days a week.
RiverEtive (Upper)
Highland, ScotlandThe Etive (Upper) put-in is at the confluence with the River Coupall, near the Kingshouse Hotel on the A82, and starts a rocky grade 2 to 3 run of about five kilometres down to Triple Falls. The section includes one grade V rapid usually portaged, and needs a high water level to be paddleable.
RiverEtive (Middle)
Highland, ScotlandThe Etive (Middle) put-in is at Triple Falls, the first falls visible from the Glen Etive road, and starts a run of about three miles down to the confluence with the Allt a' Chaorainn. The section holds paddleable flow in nearly all conditions and includes named rapids such as Letterbox and the sixteen-foot Right Angle Falls.
RiverEtive (Dalness)
Highland, ScotlandThe Etive (Dalness) put-in is below the Dalness Falls, known to paddlers as the Pot Hole, on the River Etive in Glen Etive, reached across a field where the river runs close to the single-track road. The run down to Loch Etive is graded as beginner to intermediate water, though summer flows are often too low to paddle it.
SeaEmbo Harbour slipway
Highland, ScotlandThis slipway sits on Pier Road in Embo, a small former fishing village on the Moray Firth coast about two miles north-east of Dornoch. Embo's original pier was historically too short to be much use, so local haddock yawls were launched from and hauled back up the beach directly. The village's herring and haddock fishing had largely died out by the First World War.
SeaElgol put-in
Highland, ScotlandA slipway at Elgol, a village on Loch Scavaig on Skye's Strathaird peninsula. Elgol is the departure point for summer boat trips across Loch Scavaig to Loch Coruisk beneath the Black Cuillin, run by local operators Bella Jane and Misty Isle.
SeaEigg Pier
Highland, ScotlandEigg Pier is the island's main ferry slipway, in Galmisdale Bay on the island's southeast coast. A new slipway was completed in 2004, letting the Small Isles ferry berth directly instead of using a flit boat to bring passengers ashore. The pier serves ferry links to Rum, Muck, Arisaig and Mallaig.
SeaEdderton put-in
Highland, ScotlandThis is a disused slipway and ruined pier on the Dornoch Firth shore near the village of Edderton, between Tain and the Dornoch Firth Bridge. Ordnance Survey-derived mapping marks both the pier and slipway as abandoned, and the connecting pier structure is tagged as closed to public access.
SeaDwarwick Pier
Highland, ScotlandDwarwick Pier sits at the western end of Dunnet Bay, a roughly two-mile stretch of sand between Dunnet and Castletown below Dunnet Head. A local watersports operator runs stand-up paddleboarding lessons from here, alongside surf lessons on the open beach, which is used as a beginner and longboard surf break.
SeaDrumnatorran put-in (Strontian)
Highland, ScotlandDrumnatorran is a small hamlet on the shore of Loch Sunart close to Strontian, near the head of this Highland sea loch. This unmarked slipway is one of two closely mapped launch points on the same short stretch of shore.
SeaDrumchork put-in (Aultbea)
Highland, ScotlandDrumchork is part of the scattered crofting township that runs along Loch Ewe's north-east shore alongside Aultbea, Ormiscaig and Bualnaluib. The put-in is a slipway onto the loch, which looks west across the water towards the Isle of Ewe.
SeaDroman Pier
Highland, ScotlandDroman Pier is a Highland Council slipway on Chaligaig Bay at the small settlement of Droman, on the Sutherland coast about four miles from Kinlochbervie and close to Sheigra beach. It sits in a small pebbled cove with a car park at the head of the jetty, and is used occasionally by local fishermen.
SeaDrimnin put-in (Bonnavoulin)
Highland, ScotlandThis slipway is at Drimnin on the Morvern peninsula, on the eastern shore of the Sound of Mull opposite the Isle of Mull. OpenStreetMap tags an adjoining ferry terminal node here, part of a mapped Kilchoan-to-Drimnin ferry route, distinct from the scheduled CalMac car ferry that runs between Kilchoan and Tobermory.
SeaDoune put-in
Highland, ScotlandDoune is a remote settlement on Knoydart's north coast, reached only by an estate track that runs about eight miles from Inverie via Scottas and Sandaig, since the peninsula has no through road. This slipway launches onto the Sound of Sleat, the strait separating Knoydart from Skye.
SeaDornie Slipway
Highland, ScotlandA public slipway in Dornie village, one of two slipways near the road bridge that give access to the meeting point of Loch Duich, Loch Long and Loch Alsh beside Eilean Donan Castle. Loch Long here is generally sheltered but carries a noticeable tidal flow.
SeaDiabaig put-in
Highland, ScotlandThis is a slipway by the pier at Lower Diabaig, a crofting and fishing township on the north shore of Loch Diabaig, an inlet of Loch Torridon reached by an eight-mile single-track road from Shieldaig. Lower Diabaig has a seasonal café, Gille Brighde, overlooking the loch.
RiverDaltulich/Relugas Bridge
Highland, ScotlandA whitewater put-in on the River Findhorn at Daltulich/Relugas Bridge, near the hamlet of Relugas. Downstream, past the Randolph's Leap gorge where the Findhorn meets the River Divie, the river offers kayaking for experienced paddlers over the following few kilometres.
SeaDaldrishaig put-in (Achintore, Fort William)
Highland, ScotlandThis slipway is on the Loch Linnhe shore at Achintore, along the loch-side road on the southern edge of Fort William town, looking across the water towards Ardgour.
SeaDuncraig put-in
Highland, ScotlandThis slipway sits on the south shore of Loch Carron close to Duncraig, about a kilometre east of Plockton village, near Duncraig Castle and the request-stop railway station on the Kyle of Lochalsh line.
SeaCove Pier
Highland, ScotlandCove sits where the B8057 road ends, close to the mouth of Loch Ewe as it opens into the Minch. Cove Pier is a slipway on a sheltered stretch of shore. A war memorial in the village commemorates the crews lost on the Arctic convoys that assembled on Loch Ewe in the Second World War.
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Some launch spots in this directory are seeded from open data. © OpenStreetMap contributors · Open Database Licence (ODbL)