High Reynolds number flow inside a channel of rectangular cross section is examined using Particle Image Velocimetry. One wall of the channel has been replaced with a surface of a roughness representative to that of real hydropower tunnels, i.e. a random terrain with roughness dimensions typically in the range of ≈10% - 20% of the channels hydraulic radius. The rest of the channel walls can be considered smooth. The rough surface was captured from an existing blasted rock tunnel using high resolution laser scanning and scaled to 1:10. For quantification of the size of the largest flow structures, integral length scales are derived from the auto-correlation functions of the temporally averaged velocity. Additionally, Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) and higher-order statistics are applied to the instantaneous snapshots of the velocity fluctuations. The results show a high spatial heterogeneity of the velocity and other flow characteristics in vicinity of the rough surface, putting outer similarity treatment into jeopardy. Roughness effects are not confined to the vicinity of the rough surface but can be seen in the outer flow throughout the channel, indicating a different behavior than postulated by Townsend’s similarity hypothesis. The effects on the flow structures vary depending on the shape and size of the roughness elements leading to a high spatial dependence of the flow above the rough surface. Hence, any spatial averaging, e.g. assuming a characteristic sand grain roughness factor, for determining local flow parameters becomes less applicable in this case.