Sound of Jura

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Small group of skerries in the Sound of Jura, looking Northwest towards Jura.
Small group of skerries in the Sound of Jura, looking Northwest towards Jura.

The Sound of Jura (Scottish Gaelic: An Linne Rosach) is a strait in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The Gaelic name means "Sound of Disappointment".

It is to the east of the Isle of Jura and to the west of Knapdale, part of a peninsula of the Scottish mainland. The Crinan Canal's west exit is also in the Sound of Jura. Lochs that lead to the sound include Loch Sween, and Loch Caolisport.

The north end is particularly treacherous, being filled with skerries, small islands, strong tidal currents and whirlpools. (Corrievreckan, one of Scotland's most notorious whirlpools is just to the north of the sound).

The south end, in contrast, is much wider and more open; most of the small islands and reefs are close into shore. The ferries to Colonsay and Islay from the mainland skirt the southern end of the sound.

Most of Jura's small population lives on the east coast, overlooking the sound, and amongst these would have been George Orwell when he was writing 1984

It is not to be confused with the Sound of Islay, which lies between Jura and Islay.