Spirit of the Conon River: Kelpie and the Doomed Rider (Scottish Folklore)

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The river conon lays deep in the heart of the highlands, Its waters arise from springs and peat bogs, near the village of achnasheen and it flows down through the lands of Ross, where it is met by the Black water and eventually enteres the north sea at the firth of Cromarty. It is a powerful river that has sustained the local highlanders for 100s of years, granting them both food and water. But as with all great rivers in Scotland, the dark depths of the conon was said to be patoled by a spirit or sith equal in power to the great force of the water. In this case the long winding pathways of the river were protected by an magnificent Kelpie or water horse and it is this very creature we shall learn about today in our tale.
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References:
Miller, J. (2002) The Dam Builders - Power from the Glens. Birlinn. ISBN 978-1-84158-225-2.
Payne, P. (1988) The Hydro. Aberdeen University Press. ISBN 978-0-08-036584-8.
Ashliman, D.L. (2008) Water Spirit Legends 2: The Hour Is Come but the Man Is Not [sites.pitt.edu...]
Anon (1889) Folklore and legends of Scotland. W.W. Gibbins. London
Douglas, G. (1901) Scottish Fairy and Folk Tales. A. L. Burt Company, Publishers. New York
Briggs, K. (1976) An Encyclopedia of fairies, Pantheon Books, New York
Mackinlay, J. (1893) Folklore of Scottish Lochs and Springs. Glasgow. William Hodge and co.

[@Davlavi]

Thanks for another great story and visuals.

[@joanhoffman3702]

The kelpie is one of my favorite folktale creatures…not that I would like to encounter one!

[@connorricketts1323]

thank you for a another great tale

[@heatherturner2366]

Love it when you upload

[@arthurp.8499]

Bro i love your channel sm. Its such consistently great quality, you really know your stuff and it shows. Ive recommended ur channel to so many people, I hope it grows more and more. Listening to these videos has helped me thru so much in the past year or so. Your channel is like a nice cosey nook I can hide away in when im stressed or sick. The advice in these old stories helps me reflect on a lot. The path forward always seems slightly clearer after a good binge of your vids

[@LiathWolf]

Thank you so much, it means a lot. I hope you continue to enjoy the videos.

[@connorricketts1323]

same love this channel and love folklore stories and mythology and folklore

[@helenaempusa3345]

The hour has come but not the man - must have been a widespread trope. I have read our old legends and the water sprite has used the same phrase. And even the storyline is the same, attached to some of our local lakes of course.

[@elizabethmcglothlin5406]

Such chilling words!

[@pentegarn1]

You know....I use to like horses before I started watching this channel. ;)

[@allisonshaw9341]

I still like horses, but not kelpies.

[@pentegarn1]

@@allisonshaw9341 My philosophy is....better safe than sorry. lol

[@joanhoffman3702]

Just don’t accept rides from strange horses, and you should be fine. 😂

[@ChelleLlewes]

@@joanhoffman3702 🥰🤣

[@cartoonraccoon2078]

The thing that keeps reminding me that these are just stories is how many of them are supposedly about a lone person, out by themselves, who had quite an adventure before dying in an interesting way. No documentary film crew or even another confused peasant in the dark with them to tell the story. It's almost as silly as the Japanese ghost that gets you alone in the bathroom then kills you one of two ways depending on which color toilet paper you select.

[@theetruetolkienpatriot7701]

I have a question for you there's a song I like it's called The Dark Island is it a real place in Scotland I would like to know its origin if you can find it thank you . wolf,

[@LiathWolf]

It was originally known as both Dr. Mackay's Farewell to Creagorry, and also Dr. Mcinnes's Farewell to South Uist. The song comes from the group of islands known as Uist, But more specifically Benbecula, Which is known as Beinn nam Fadhla (the island of the hill/mountain) or An t-Eilean Dorcha (the Dark Island). hope that helps

[@theetruetolkienpatriot7701]

@@LiathWolf oh thank you that really helps a lot I've always liked your videos keep Alba alive is there a Scotland I did Alba