Annandale Water is a loch

Loch

Loch is the Irish and Scottish Gaelic word for a lake or a sea inlet. It has been anglicised as lough, although this is pronounced the same way as loch. Some lochs could also be called a firth, fjord, estuary, strait or bay...

 in Annandale, Dumfries and Galloway

Dumfries and Galloway

Dumfries and Galloway is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland. It was one of the nine administrative 'regions' of mainland Scotland created in 1975 by the Local Government etc. Act 1973...

, in the south west of Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

. It is part of Annandale Water service station

Annandale Water Services

Annandale Water services is a motorway service station in the village of Johnstonebridge, Scotland. The service station is located next to the A74 motorway and is accessed using motorway junction 16 in both the northbound and southbound directions...

 at Junction 16 of the A74(M), close to Johnstonebridge

Johnstonebridge

Johnstonebridge is a village in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland.It is roughly halfway between Moffat and Lockerbie, and lies on the A74 motorway. The Annandale Water Services on the motorway are in Johnstonebridge; prior to the construction of the motorway there were services on the old A74 road...

, Dinwoodie and Newton Wamphray

Newton Wamphray

Newton Wamphray is a village in Dumfries and Galloway. Wamphray is the name of the surrounding parish and of the Wamphray Water, which flows south-west through the Wamphray Glen to join the River Annan near the small village, or hamlet, of Newton....

, and halfway between Moffat

Moffat

Moffat is a former burgh and spa town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, lying on the River Annan, with a population of around 2,500. The most notable building in the town is the Moffat House Hotel, designed by John Adam...

 and Lockerbie

Lockerbie

Lockerbie is a town in the Dumfries and Galloway region of south-western Scotland. It lies approximately from Glasgow, and from the English border. It had a population of 4,009 at the 2001 census...

.

Before the opening of the Motorway service station, the old A74 road was adjacent to the loch and farmland. The services were opened at Easter 1995, and the lake and nature trail are a valuable amenity for motorists, walkers and others.

SEPA, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Scottish Environment Protection Agency

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency is Scotland’s environmental regulator. Its main role is to protect and improve Scotland's environment...

, regularly monitors the water quality and other factors.

Wildfowl populate the loch in large numbers, including mute swan

Mute Swan

The Mute Swan is a species of swan, and thus a member of the duck, goose and swan family Anatidae. It is native to much of Europe and Asia, and the far north of Africa. It is also an introduced species in North America, Australasia and southern Africa. The name 'mute' derives from it being less...

s and geese, and mallard

Mallard

The Mallard , or Wild Duck , is a dabbling duck which breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand and Australia....

s.