Tag Archives: power supply

The Railways of Skye and Adjacent Islands – Part 6 – Storr Lochs Hydroelectric Power Station

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Storr Lochs hydro-electric power station was commissioned in 1952. It was built by the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board, and used water from Lochs Leathan and Fada, to provide the first general supply of electricity to the island. The power station has a total output of 2.40 MW. Because the location of the turbine house was not easily accessible, it was (and continues to be) served by a standard-gauge electric funicular railway. [1]

The location of Storr Lochs Hydroelectric Power Station in the Northeast of the Isle of Skye. [1]

The funicular is the only working railway on the Isle of Skye. It is below the spectacular stacks and landslips of The Storr on the Trotternish Peninsula, a few kilometres north of Portree.

Loch Leathan and Loch Fada adjacent to the A855 provide the water used in the hydroelectric scheme. [Google Maps, June 2025]
The hydroelectric scheme at Storr Lochs. [1]
The railway alongside the penstock pipes is described as a funicular which is not really the right description as it is a single car steel rope worked system. A funicular would usually have two cars which ass each other at the mid-point of the line. This photograph was taken in 1983, © wfmillar and licensed for reuse under a Creative Commons Licence (CC BY-SA 2.0). [2]
The hydroelectric power station is fed by water from the Storr Lochs which cascades down to the turbines via the penstock pipes seen bottom left. There is a cable railway running alongside the pipes. Beyond the power station can be seen the sweep of Bearreraig Bay with the cliffs of Rubha Sùghar beyond that, © Rob Farrow and licensed for reuse under a Creative Commons Licence. [3]
The power station is some 500ft below the lochs and accessed now by a path, but previously by nearly 700 steps alongside the cable, © Norrie Adamson and licensed for reuse under a Creative Commons Licence (CC BY-SA 2.0). [4]
The upper terminus/station and winch house of the cliff railway, © Russel Wills and licensed for reuse under a Creative Commons Licence, (CC BY-SA 2.0). [8]
The single car ‘train’ is descending the cable railway which connects the Storr Lochs Dam to the Bearreraig hydro power station on the shore of Bearreraig Bay below. The top of the railway, seen here, is less steep than the longer lower section. The three small structures on the cliff edge on the right are information boards at a viewpoint, © Richard Dorrell and licensed for reuse under a Creative Commons Licence. [5]
The cable railway descends the hillside alongside the pipes carrying the water from the Storrs Reservoirs down to the power station, © Rob Farrow and licensed for reuse under a Creative Commons Licence. [6]

The cable railway was built early in construction of the power scheme, and used to carry materials and equipment to the shores of Loch Bearreraig. In the concrete foundation of the railway over 600 rough steps were built. The first pipeline was constructed for the 1952 opening, and the second pipeline, running parallel added in 1956. [7] The maximum gradient on the railway is 1 in 2. [9]

Photographs of the construction of the scheme can be found here. [10]

Other pictures of this site can be seen here. [11]

References

  1. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Storr_Lochs_Hydro-Electric_Scheme, accessed on 3rd June 2025.
  2. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1275950 accessed on 3rd June 2025.
  3. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/829150, accessed on 3rd June 2025.
  4. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/107735, accessed on 3rd June 2025.
  5. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2667791, accessed on 3rd June 2025.
  6. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/830640, accessed on 3rd June 2025.
  7. https://www.ambaile.org.uk/asset/8915, accessed on 3rd June 2025.
  8. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6613950, accessed on 3rd June 2025.
  9. https://www.railscot.co.uk/img/51/33, accessed on 3rd June 2025.
  10. https://www.ambaile.org.uk/search/?searchQuery=Storr+dam, accessed on 4th June 2025.
  11. https://www.ambaile.org.uk/search/?searchQuery=Storr+power, accessed on 4th June 2025.