Loch Morlich (Scottish Gaelic, Loch Mhùrlaig) is a freshwater loch in the Badenoch and Strathspey area of Highland, Scotland. It is part of the Glenmore Forest Park, near Aviemore. The loch is home to a watersports center with kayaking, sailing and windsurfing to name a few of the activities. There is also a yacht club and great cycling routes around the loch with fantastic views. Long stretches of its shoreline are formed of sandy beaches. When examined closely the sand of these beaches contains large amounts of broken glass. However, this glass does not come from careless tourists discarding bottles irresponsibly, but is in fact left over from the Second World War when the area around Loch Morlich was used as a commando school. In particular it was used as a training area for the Kompani Linge (the Norwegian Independent (army) Company, trained by the British Special Operations Executive) because of the close resemblance of the area, both in landscape and climate, to Norway. A memorial to the Kompani Linge can be found outside the Glenmore Forest Park visitor centre. The loch is just a few miles from Aviemore where there is train and bus services daily making the loch easy to get to.
