Plodda Falls - Spectacular Spot

Looking to visit Plodda Falls? It's one of the most spectacular waterfalls in Scotland - a 46 metre or 150 feet plume tumbling down with viewing points above and below the falls. It is also easy get to being just 0.5 miles from the car park (with the option for a longer walk if you prefer).

Check out all you need to know about this fantastic spot - it's not just a waterfall, there are huge, historic trees and a cake shed too!

1. Plodda Falls - Location

Plodda Falls is located 5 miles from the village of Tomich. It's on a Forestry Commission site.

The postcode to reach Plodda is IV4 7LY but you need to keep going 1.75 miles further on to reach the car park.

2. Route to Plodda Falls

There is a lovely circular drive that you can do to reach Plodda Falls.

Take the A862 towards Beauly from Inverness. Just before reaching Beauly (just after crossing the bridge with traffic lights over the Beauly River), take the left turn onto the A831. This is scenic road which follows the river.

Continue past the Aigas Centre, and pass under the ropes which are for squirrels to safely cross the road!

Eventually you will arrive at Cannich. Continue straight on, passing the cemetery on your right hand side. The road follows alongside the River Glass and bears round to the left. After crossing the river there is a right turn which is signed for Plodda Falls.

The road takes you through the pretty little village of Tomich. The hotel is the on the right, with a little cafe on the left.

You continue along this road until your reach another sign for Plodda Falls and this is where the road becomes more of a track. It is quite a wide track and it was also quite busy. It is about 3 miles along this road to reach Plodda Falls car park.

3. Walking To Plodda Falls - Two Routes

Plodda Falls - Tweedmouth Route

If you want a longer circular walking route then follow the Tweedmouth route. This is the path which goes straight on from the car park. This route takes you down through the woods and then brings you back alongside the river.

The walk through the woods is quite narrow in places and it is a track through the woods rather than a path.

On the lower section of the walk after you have passed through the woods you will get a view of Plodda Cottage which is a super cute cottage with dingly dell type feel to it.

You will then arrive at the riverside where there is a handily located picnic bench.

The walk alongside the river is quite steep. As you come up beside the river there is a little path down to the right with a number of steps. This will take you to the lower viewpoint where you get a great view of Plodda Falls, although it is difficult to get it all in one photo shot!

This walk takes about 1 hour to complete depending on your walking speed.

Plodda Falls - Direct Route

Take the left turn out of the car park and you will come to the falls in about a quarter of a mile. The path will bring you to the upper viewing platform which is a wooden platform. It extends out past the start of the falls, giving you a straight down view of a 150' drop.

This walk takes about 30 minutes to complete depending on your walking speed.

4. Plodda Falls Tall Trees

There are some huge Douglas firs in the woodland section of Plodda Falls if you are following the Tweedmouth Route.

There is a picnic bench and to continue walking to the falls you take the path that is before the picnic table as you approach it. It is the steeper path.

5. Plodda Falls - Getting to the Falls Themselves

To the right is what appears to be a very steep and narrow path. This leads down to a wonderful view of the falls. Don't be put off as it is only a few minutes from the junction to the view of the waterfalls and it is spectacular. There is only a small space to view the falls because you are squeezed in beside a tree. It is difficult to get the full height of the falls into a photo because you are so close, and that's the wonderful thing. The noise is powerful and there was also a bit of spray when we were there too.

It really is impressive and worth the walk down. There are stone steps down and a handrail in places but there is also an open section. It was a bit slippy due to the weather conditions and the viewing area was also slippy due to the spray but nothing to worry about if you used your common sense.

Returning back to the junction from this viewing area you take a short and steep section up to the viewing platform at the top of the falls. Again there are stone steps and a bit of handrail for this section.

The viewing platform is somewhat terrifying if, like me, you are scared of heights.

The end of the viewing platform is very narrow so only 2 people can really stand right at the peak.

From the viewing platform there is around a 20 minute walk back to the car park.

Along the way is another beautiful waterfall where the river falls over a series of rocks. It is beautiful in a very different way to Plodda.

6. Plodda Falls Tips:

There are no toilet facilities at Plodda Falls. The nearest would be at Tomich.

It was quite muddy when we visited so good walking shoes are recommended. We saw a guy walking in white trainers which was quite a bold move!

There were a number of midgies, particularly around the car park area, so be prepared for them. They can be really annoying.

The walk we took involved a lot of steps and also tree roots and other obstacles. Some people that had taken smaller children had to carry them as it was too tricky for them to manage. 

7. Plodda Falls Top Tip

On the return from Plodda Falls we saw a sign for Sue's Cake Shed. This is just as you get to the end of the Forestry Commission track and are about to return onto the tarmac road. It's well worth a little diversion.

Take a left turn instead of going back to Tomich. A few hundred yards on the left you will see a tiny shed. Inside are a selection of cakes in boxes with prices on the box and an honesty box.

The price is per packet of cakes, not each individual cake. We enjoyed lovely Ginger cake, scones and brownies. I would recommend turning round using the bottom of Sue's drive way otherwise it is a long drive down a fairly pot holed track to find a turning point

8. Plodda Falls - Tomich Village

Tomich is a very small village set in Glen Affric. For a real get away in the Scottish Highlands this is a lovely spot. It would be an ideal place to stay and enjoy a nice walk to Plodda Falls.

9. Plodda Falls - Tweedmouth Fountain

On the way back to Tomich take a moment to stop for a look at the Tweedmouth fountain. It was built to remember the Earl and Countess of Tweedmouth who are depicted either side of the fountain. However, I really liked the dog's heads on the water pipes. How lovely the fountain must has looked when it was all working.

10. Retriever Statue

Just next door to the fountain is a lovely statue of a dog. It's a Golden Retriever which was first bred on the Guisachan estate. 

Just across from statue is a cute little free lending library. Unfortunately, it was shut due to Covid19 but the next time I return I will take a book with me and hopefully do a swop.

The cafe was closed by the time we got back - it's open from 10am to 3pm. There was a nice table outside that I had my eye on - again another reason to go back!

When we got back to the junction by the bridge instead of turning left and following our route back through Cannich we went straight on. This took us towards Drumnadrochit. Just before Drumnadrochit we turned left, signed for Beauly and went over the hill. This is a lovely scenic route and we saw Belted Galloway cattle in the fields and the heather look particularly lovely.

This road brings you back past the Belladrum Estate on the right hand side and eventually back to a T junction with the A862. We turned left to go back to Beauly.

11. Plodda Falls FAQs

What height are Plodda Falls?

Plodda Falls are 46 metres high or 150 feet high. This makes them very impressive and the biggest waterfall in the area.

Can You Drive to Plodda Falls?

You can easily drive to Plodda Falls. The road is fine until the very last section which is quite a rough forestry track so you need to take extra care driving the last section.

There is free parking when you get close to Plodda falls themselves.

How Long is the Walk to Plodda Falls?

If you take the shortest route to the Falls the walk is around 10 - 15 minutes each way. This takes you from the car park to the viewing platform.

There is a much longer circular walk which takes you down through the woods and then up beside the river to get a great view of the waterfalls. This walk takes about 1.5 hours depending on your walking speed.

Can You Swim at Plodda Falls?

You can swim at Plodda Falls if you want to. As with any river you need to be aware of changing water levels.

Page Links:

Guisachan Estate

Forestry Commission Scotland