Loch of Stenness

The Loch of Stenness is a large brackish loch on Mainland, Orkney, Scotland and is named for the parish of Stenness. It is 2 miles northeast of the town of Stromness, lies immediately to the south of the Loch of Harray and is close to the World Heritage neolithic sites of the Stones of Stenness and Ring of Brodgar.

Photo: John Ireland, CC BY-SA 2.0.

Places of Interest

Highlights include Ring of Brodgar and Unstan Chambered Cairn.

Ring of Brodgar

Heath

Photo: Otter, CC BY-SA 3.0.

The Ring of Brodgar is a Neolithic henge and stone circle about 6 miles north-east of Stromness on Mainland, the largest island in Orkney, Scotland. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the Heart of Neolithic Orkney.

Unstan Chambered Cairn

Photo: Bruce McAdam, CC BY-SA 2.0.

Unstan is a Neolithic chambered cairn located about 2 mi north-east of Stromness on Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. The tomb was built on a promontory that extends into the Loch of Stenness near the settlement of Howe.

Ness of Brodgar

Protected area

Photo: profile, CC BY 2.0.

The Ness of Brodgar is a Neolithic-era archaeological site covering 2.5 hectares located between the Ring of Brodgar and the Stones of Stenness in the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site on Mainland, Orkney, Scotland.

Places in the Area

Nearby places include Cairston and Stenness.

Cairston

Locality

Photo: Bill Boaden, CC BY-SA 2.0.

Cairston is a village on Mainland, in Orkney, Scotland. The settlement is within the parish of Stromness. Within the village is located the Castle of Cairston which is said to have belonged to the House of Gordons, and may have been built in 1152, as contested in a Saga. Cairston is situated 1½ miles southwest of Loch of Stenness.

Stenness

Photo: Nachosan, CC BY-SA 3.0.

Stenness is a small, scattered village in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, on the A965 main road between Kirkwall and Stromness. It has several UNESCO World Heritage Listed neolithic sights: the Stones, Maeshowe and Ring of Brodgar, with Skara Brae a few miles further north.

Bu‘ Point

Locality

Photo: John Ireland, CC BY-SA 2.0.

Bu‘ Point is a locality, which is situated 2½ miles south of Loch of Stenness.

Loch of Stenness

Type: Lake
Description: large brackish lake on Mainland, Orkney Islands, Scotland, UK, outflows via The Bush to the Bay of Ireland
Category: body of water
Location: Orkney Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom, Britain and Ireland, Europe
View on OpenStreetMap

Latitude

59° north

Longitude

-3.25° or 3° 15′ west

Elevation

39 feet (12 metres)

Open location code

9CFR2Q22+22

GeoNames ID

2636954

Wikidata ID

Q1736274

This page is based on GeoNames, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons, and Wikipedia.

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Satellite Map

Discover Loch of Stenness from above in high-definition satellite imagery.

In Other Languages

From Basque to Swedish—“Loch of Stenness” goes by many names.

Basque: “Stenness aintzira”
Catalan: “Loch of Stenness”
Cebuano: “Loch of Stenness”
Chinese: “斯丹尼斯湖”
French: “Loch d’Harray”
French: “loch de Stenness”
French: “Loch de Stenness”
French: “Loch of Stenness”
German: “Loch of Stenness”
Hebrew: “לוך סטנס”
Japanese: “ステネス湖”
Norwegian Bokmål: “Loch of Stenness”
Norwegian: “Loch of Stenness”
Swedish: “Loch of Stenness”

Localities in the Area

Explore places such as Wasbister and Clouston.

Notable Places Nearby

Highlights include Mainland and Ring of Brodgar.

Orkney Islands: Must-Visit Destinations

Delve into Kirkwall, Stromness, Hoy, and Shapinsay.

Curious Places to Discover

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