Alice’s Bower

Alice’s Bower is a tiny islet in Loch Leven, near Kinross, lying about 450 metres north-west of Castle Island and around a kilometre east of the town. It is one of the small islands of the loch, a low, grassy patch of land that only became an island in its present form after the loch’s water level was lowered in the 19th century.

Landscape

Loch Leven is the largest lowland loch in Scotland, a broad, shallow sheet of water ringed by the Lomond Hills and the Ochils. In the 1830s its level was lowered by more than a metre to provide water power for mills downstream, and several of its islands, including Alice’s Bower, were exposed or greatly enlarged. Today the islet is a quiet resting place for birds, close to the loch’s famous castle.

History

Alice’s Bower has no recorded history of its own, but its neighbour is one of the most famous islands in Scotland. Castle Island holds Lochleven Castle, where Mary, Queen of Scots was imprisoned in 1567 and forced to give up her throne, before her dramatic escape by boat in May 1568. Further out in the loch, St Serf's Inch has the ruins of a medieval priory, one of the oldest religious sites in Scotland.

Loch Leven is a National Nature Reserve and is internationally important for its wildfowl.

More about Alice's Bower

The loch’s small islands, including Alice’s Bower, Roy's Folly, Reed Bower and Scart Island, are important as safe places where birds can rest and nest away from people and predators. Loch Leven is a National Nature Reserve and is internationally important for its wildfowl.

Visiting

There is no landing on Alice’s Bower, but it is easy to see from the shore at Kinross and from the boat that takes visitors from Kinross Pier to Lochleven Castle in summer. The Loch Leven Heritage Trail runs right around the loch and is perfect for walking and cycling. You can collect Alice’s Bower as a sighting in your Island Passport.

Wildlife and area

Loch Leven is one of the best places in Britain to see wildfowl. In winter, thousands of pink-footed geese roost on the loch, along with Whooper Swan, Goldeneye and Tufted Duck. In summer look out for Osprey fishing over the water, and for Great Crested Grebe and Grey Heron. Other islands nearby include Roy's Folly, Castle Island, Scart Island and Reed Bower.