Swans of Loch Sunart

On the banks of Loch Sunart lived an ambitious Clan Chief and his wife who had high hopes for their only son. They longed for him to fulfil his duty by marrying well, adding to the clan's power and lands. But little did they know that their son was already in love. His intended bride was just a simple crofter's daughter, not that something like that mattered to him one bit.

The lovers would sneak down to a hidden spot on the banks of the Loch and spend hours together talking about what their life would be like once they were married. Eventually the young man plucked up the courage and told his parents of his intentions. They were furious that he would be so selfish as to put his happiness above the future of the clan. He was forbidden from seeing the girl ever again.

Like many young people in love, he took no heed of his parent's instructions. His mother knew her headstrong son would carry on regardless and she followed him to discover when and where the couple met every day. There was no way she was going to let her boy bring misfortune on the clan.

She approached a local witch and paid her to deal with the crofter's daughter by any means necessary. The next time that the girl arrived at the meeting point by Loch Sunart, the witch cast a spell and transformed her into a beautiful swan. The boy arrived soon after and waited for his partner to appear as usual, but she was nowhere to be found.

He waited by the loch every day from sunrise to sunset, until with a broken heart he eventually gave up. To try and cheer him up, his friends organised a day of hunting. When one of the many swans on the loch swam nearby, the boy instinctively took aim and struck it with his arrow.

As the majestic swan died, it turned back into his lost love. The Chief's son was distraught and dived into the water next to the girl’s body before any of his friends could stop him. Wracked with guilt, he pulled out his knife and stabbed himself in the heart.

As the bodies of the lovers disappeared below the surface, all the swans on Loch Sunart flew away and it’s said that none have ever been seen there since.