Victoria Falls, Loch Maree

Victoria Falls is a short, easy waterfall walk on the shores of Loch Maree, named after Queen Victoria who visited the site in 1877 — a quick but genuinely rewarding stop combining a pretty cascade with fine views over one of Scotland's most beautiful lochs.

The route starts from a car park signposted off the A832, just west of the Loch Maree Hotel. A short, wide, firm-surfaced path leads from the car park through part of the ancient Caledonian pinewood of Slattadale Forest, within the wider Beinn Eighe National Nature Reserve, to a viewing platform giving a first look at the falls — fed by the outflow of Loch Garbhaig, tumbling down from the slopes of Beinn Eighe to the south. The lower viewing area is accessible even for those with limited mobility, making this one of the more inclusive short walks in the area.

For better, less obstructed views of the upper fall, a steeper path continues uphill alongside the river, with the effort rewarded by a fine outlook back down over the falls and across the waters of Loch Maree itself, dotted with islands and backed by the surrounding mountains. The walk loops back down to the car park, completing a short circuit that most visitors comfortably manage in well under half an hour.

This is an easy, family-friendly stop suitable for most visitors on the lower path, though the climb to the upper viewpoint is steeper and requires a little more effort — the whole walk makes an ideal quick break for anyone travelling the North Coast 500 route between Kinlochewe and Gairloch.

Parking at Victoria Falls is free; there is limited bus service along the A832.