Euchar Bridge

Heading south across the bridge

The Euchar Bridge carries the A816 across the River Euchar below Loch Scammadale and a few miles south of Kilninver. It lies on a long straight, where the road was re-aligned to avoid a detour up the glen to cross the old bridge. Although the bridge is not shown on maps from 1939, it is shown on the 1946 OS Quarter Inch sheet, suggesting that it was completed in late 1939, when other improvements on the route were known to be ongoing.

The bridge itself is a narrow three span concrete structure, with slender panelled concrete parapets. These parapets widen to form substantial piers at the four corners, and smaller 'buttresses' over the intervening bridge piers, but they do not provide any room for pavements or refuges. It sits at the bottom of a dip, and while the road either side of the bridge doesn't appear to be any wider, the bridge is definitely a pinch point with large vehicles pulling out to straddle the centre line, forcing oncoming traffic to slow.

Old Bridge

Lying perhaps 300m upstream, the original bridge over the River Euchar still stands, and is now the private, gated access to Glen Euchar House. It appears to be a single stone arch, probably from the 19th Century, but with restricted access and trees along the banks it is difficult to be certain. The old road line to the north of the river is still open as the road up the glen to Loch Scammadale, that to the south is now the private drive for the house, and also gated from the A816.