Falls of Lora

Falls of Lora, Oban, Scotland Falls of Lora, Oban, Scotland

falls of lora

These are perfect conditions and slack water for diving the wall!

The Falls of Lora are a spectacular narrow sea exit to Loch Etive where there is a specific feature called a sill. This is a rocky reef which acts as a barrier holding up the tide going in and out. During big tides the volume of water being squeezed through the narrows creates a torrent of water, creating spectacular conditions as you can see in the images above.

You may not think this would be a suitable dive spot, but given the volume of water this creates a vast amount of food for marine life. Underwater every surface is covered in anemones, sponges, hydroids, soft corals, in many different colours and shapes. In addition the constant water has sculpted the rocks, creating gullies, walls, cuts and crevices making for spectacular scenery.

Although this is a dive site not to be taken lightly, we usually only dive it under specific conditions at very slack tides. At these times we can up to 90min of slack water and lot’s of time for exploration.

Unfortunately many people have dived it at strong tides, had bad experiences or other dive boats taken people at the wrong time. This has given the site a very bad reputation! Diving at specific tides is a safe and enjoyable way to explore all the amazing topography here.

See below for images & video of the marine life there and some of the underwater life and rock formations.

dive boat under connell bridge

rock formations underwater at the falls of lora

rocky formations at the falls of lora

falls of lora

Anemones at falls of lora

Nudibranch feeding in the shallows

Nudibranch feeding in the shallows