The Kelpies
Kelpies are water spirits who normally take the shape of a horse, either black, grey or white. However, they have also been rumoured to appear as a beautiful young maiden who lures men to their watery grave. There are many stories about Kelpies but we will look at two slightly different ones here.
The Origin Story
This story tells that a group of children go to play at the loch that is reputed to have a Kelpie living in it. Even though the children knew the tale, when a horse appeared they felt compelled to climb up on it's back. All except on boy.
The young boy, Dougal, reached out to touch the Horse but his finger became stuck fast, the children on it's back realise their peril. Dougal pulls a pen knife out from his pocket and cuts off his finger as the Kelpie dives beneath the water of the loch taking his finger and his friends with it.
A Kelpies sticky coat is one of the most interesting features of the creature, once touched, you are stuck fast, unless like Dougal you are willing to sacrifice a finger that is.
The second tale brings us to another scary fact, you do not need to be physically drowned by the Kelpie. If you are marked for death by the creature, then death is coming for you.....and soon.....
There were some men working in the fields next to the River Conon, when they heard a voice seeming to come from the river itself. The voice warned "The hour has come, but not the man". Then a large black horse appeared out of the water only to disappear again.
The men decided to stay away from the river just to safe, but then along came a man on a horse and road into the river to cross to the other side. The workers were afraid for the man's safety, pulling him from his horse and away from the river they shut him inside a nearby church and stood guard on the doors for over an hour. Only to find that when they opened the doors, to their horror, he was lying dead by the church font of shallow water.
Key Locations
The Kelpies are a pair of monumental steel horse-heads between the Scottish towns of Falkirk and Grangemouth. They stand next to the M9 motorway and form the eastern gateway of the Forth and Clyde Canal, which meets the River Carron here. Each head is 30 metres high and weighs approximately 300 tonnes.
The Kelpies
A medieval log boat was found in the River Conon near Dingwall. It was discovered in 1874 following a flood and change in the river's course. Three timbers from it were stored at the National Museums of Scotland, and subsequent radiocarbon dating suggests it was produced in the late 13th or early 14th century.
The River Conon
The world's one and only rotating boat lift. A marvel of engineering and Scottish Canals' flagship destination, The Falkirk Wheel. Connecting the Forth & Clyde Canal with the Union Canal in a half-turn that takes only five minutes!
The Falkirk Wheel
Continue Your Journey Through Storied Landscapes
Explore another legend from North East England and the Scottish Borders.
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