EHG5081 - Watching Brief - Corrimony Hydro Scheme, Glenurquhart, Drumnadrochit

An archaeological watching brief was undertaken by AOC Archaeology Group in 2016-17 at the site of a new run-of-river hydro scheme along the River Enrick at Corrimony, Glenurquhart. The watching brief requirement arose due to a number of archaeological sites being identified in a previous walkover survey. Ahead of development in October 2016, a concrete structure was evaluated in order to create a record of the site prior to development. Further sites recorded during a demarcation survey included a possible cairn and two shielings, all of which were fenced off for their protection. A watching brief was carried out intermittently between February to June 2017, where ground works for the associated hydro scheme structures, pipeline route and access tracks were monitored. A clearance cairn, a field boundary, a field drain and three pits of unknown age, which were impacted upon by the works, were excavated and recorded. No archaeological artefacts were recovered. Following environmental analysis and radiocarbon dating, it was found that two buried pit features, comprising a possible hearth and posthole located on the lower terrace by the river contained evidence for early medieval and late Bronze Age activity. A third pit located uphill near a possible prehistoric cairn may have formed the remains of another prehistoric hearth. The results have shown that the landscape has further potential for multiperiod prehistoric archaeology to survive below and above the present ground surface. <1>