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Published: October 7th 2013
As I prepare to leave Ireland, I am just catching up with my blog about our Scottish Rail tour
After a sunny couple of days in Edinburgh, rain had set in the morning we were due to catch the train. It did not matter too much though as we were to spend the full day on the train travelling to our first hotel in Mallaig.
After a 55min journey to Glasgow a quick change of trains saw us on our way to Mallaig. This longer journey was a good chance to get to know some of my fellow tour travellers. Along the way we saw a number of Lochs (Scottish for lake) and some of the rugged mountain countryside. The weather stopped us getting a full view of some of the higher mountains. It was evident that weather could be harsh in this part of the countryside due to the lack of growth around the hills and moors.
The highlights of our first train journey came 2 hours in where the countryside became much more rugged so in order to build the line through the hills a number of concrete viaducts or bridges were built. Glenfinnon viaduct is
the largest of them all with a height of 100 feet and 21 arches. Glenfinnon was part of the scenery for the Harry Potter films.
Another highlight of the first day was travelling by Neptune's Staircase just outside Fort William. The staircase is a series of cascading locks that marks the end of the Calendonian canel, which along with a few lochs in the middle of Scotland connects Loch Ness in the East with waters in the west of Scotland.
After a long journey we finally arrived at Mallaig, which would be our base for the next 3 nights. The cloud had cleared for our arrival and just off the coast we had great views of the western Isles of Muck, Eigg and Rum. We were lucky to be able to get some good photos of the sun setting behind Rum that evening as we were not to have the same lovely view after our stay that night.
On our first day in the region we took in a coach tour. Our driver, a native Englishman who had moved up to the region with his family 7 years before, gave us a good insight into the history
of the region and what it was like to live in the Scottish western highlands, the big advantages being the nice scenery and the tight knit community.
During our stay in Scotland we had good daylight with sunrise between 6:30 and 7am and sunset around 7- 7:30pm. Our driver told us that in the height of summer, the sun never fully sets but on the other hand in December/early January daylight time is 6 hrs maximum with the sun lower in the sky. The best months weather wise to visit the Western highlands is in May/June.
After the intro to the area by our driver, our first stop was historical Glenfinnon station which included a museum giving a history of railway in the Western highlands as well as the famous railway viaducts.
We were at the museum in good time to see the popular Jacobite steam train pull up to the station with some good photo opportunities before train passengers were allowed onto the platform. The train runs through the Scottish highlands from Fort William to Mallaig daily 5-6 months over the warmer time of the year. We were fortunate to be booked on the train from
Mallaig back to Fort William in the afternoon. The train is just about fully booked each season and this was the case until its last 2013 journey at the end of October.
From the station it was onto the nearby Bonnie Prince Charlie monument which is on the shores of Loch Shiel. The monument is built close to the site where Bonnie Prince Charlie started the ultimately unsuccessful Jacobite uprising in 1845 in a bid to gain back royal control for the Stuart family.
Our stop here was also another photo opportunity to get pictures of the Glenfinnon viaduct as well as Loch Shiel, part of the film scenes of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
After that it was time to head back to Mallaig for a couple of hours of free time and lunch before our steam train ride back to Fort William. Mallaig, being a seaside town, naturally has a good supply of seafood so the local fish and chips went down well and did not disappoint anyone. We enjoyed our train ride in the afternoon also with good scenery and other views of the viaducts and Neptune's staircase enroute.
Day 2
Loch Shiel
Loch Schiel was part of the scenery used in Harry Potter - the Goblet of Firein Mallaig was supposed to see us take a 5 hour cruise around the small isles of Muck and Eigg but unfortunately the cruise boat was in for repairs. This was disappointing but the islands were clouded over and maybe we might not have seen much. Instead we had a free morning to relax around Mallaig before heading out to the remotest pub in Britain, The Old Forge inn in the afternoon. In the morning I took the opportunity to take some walks around town and up a couple of hills to get good views of Mallaig village.
After lunch we took a 45 min cruise to the Old Forge which was only accessible by foot or boat. Our cruise was worth it not only for the good scenery but the afternoon tea on we arrived. We had the choice of three cakes and at my table I got to sample all three. Whilst we were at the pub, some hikers arrived. I felt that I should have been walking with them to walk off afternoon tea and some of the other nice food I had enjoyed on the tour. The weather took a turn for the worse on
Glenfinnon viaduct
Built in the late 1800s our boat ride back to Mallaig, so we were glad to get inside and settle for dinner.
Being the third day of the tour, I had been able to speak to many more of my fellow tour travellers. I was the only Australian in a group of Britons from all over the UK. I became known as the 'Australian girl' and was quickly reminded of British successes in the cricket and rugby. My only comeback was the current successes of Aussie golfers.
There was also the occasional joke about me being upside down, but it was all good natured though and I enjoyed hearing about how the locals lived their lives and where they took their holidays. With an extensive railway network in Europe, most of the tour group had come to meet the tour in Edinburgh from all parts of the UK by train. Many of the group spoke of local pride after the success of the London 2012 Olympics. Hearing of the lead up to the games and of the great buzz throughout the games brought back good memories of the Sydney Olympics.
Amongst the tour group were 2 retired dairy farming couples who came
The Old Forge Inn
This hotel is the most remote pub in the entire UK. There is no road access, the only way in is by boat or foot.. from Cornwall and the Isle of Jersey, part of the Channel Islands group between the UK and France. As well as being great to chat to them generally, it was interesting to hear about the local farming industry.
From Mallaig it was time to head to our next hotel stop Beauly via the Isle of Skye. Unfortunately the worst weather of the tour had come our way and much of the Isle of Skye was under cloud. Our 30 minute bus ferry cruise across to Skye was at least a smooth ride though and we did see Skye in the distance a couple of days earlier when the weather was much clearer.
Our bus driver gave us the local history as we travelled around Skye and even though we could not see as much, the sun made an appearance as we were travelling past one of the Isle's Lochs, so we were treated to a nice large rainbow over the lake. Our bus driver asked which one of us was going dive into the water to find the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!
We stopped for lunch and browsing in the isle town
Beauly Priory
Beauly priory dates back to around the 1200s. It is ruins today with interesting gravestones now even forming part of the inner shell of the abbey of Portree and from their it was of to the village of Kyle of Lochalsh to catch our next train. This village borders the water surrounding Skye and to get to it the bus travelled over a large span bridge, built to be able to fit underneath the Royal Yacht Brittania whenever it visited the area. We didn't leave the Isle of Skye without hearing the Skye Boat song( who remembers singing Speed Bonnie Boat at school?), which told the tale of Bonnie Prince Charlie fleeing Scotland by boat, to live the rest of his life in exile in France, after the failed Jacobite uprising.
0nce our train departed it was a 2.5 hour ride across to the East side of The Scottish highlands. The clouds had at least cleared by the afternoon so we had better views. We passed through many villages with Scandanavian type names, evidence of the viking settlement in the area centuries ago. We also passed the luxurious Royal Scotsman train e route. For at least 3000GBP, one can enjoy a 3-4 day tour along the highlands...how some people can live.
After our journey finished we had a brief ride by coach to our
Lovatt Arms hotel Beauly
The historic Lovat arms hotel was built back in the 1800s and today operates as a hotel. My room is the top left arch hotel in Beauly. Our train passed through Beauly, but the station being the smallest in the UK is not much larger than two car spaces, would not have catered for a group of 40 getting off the train with all their luggage.
Our first day in Beauly was free. I spend the morning exploring Beauly including the remains of the 1200s Abbey, Beauly priory, and looking around this pretty town. Beauly was name as such after Mary Queen of Scots passed through the area and in her French accent described the area as 'Beauliful'. Many of the buildings in the town and in neighbouring villages are built with a red sandstone including our hotel, a later 1800s building that was a family's hunting lodge before it was converted to a hotel in the 1980s.
In the afternoon I took the train to Inverness where I enjoyed a 45 minute walk along the River Ness admiring historic buildings and distant views of the hills. It was a nice day to be out and about, the best of our tour so far. Along the way of my walk as I walked through the mid river Ness Islands, I came across
Walking along the river Ness at Inverness
As I walked through the mid river islands, I came across an old tree log that had been painted as a river monster. Eels as well as Salmon are common in the river Ness a fallen tree painted appropriately, as it looked like the Loch Ness water jumping out of the river at passers by!
Alas the nice weather did not last for our cruise along the famous Loch Ness the next morning with midst covering part of the lake and surrounding hills. But the visit to the area was well worth it with an excellent visitors centre that gave us interactive displays and explanations about the history of sightings of 'Nessie', the Loch Ness monster, and the use of Loch Ness, the largest lake in the UK, for scientific research use today. The centre was so well set up that one felt like we were walking through the depths of Loch Ness.
So does the Loch Ness Monster exist? We saw nothing in the lake and its been 3-4 decades since the last reported sighting. There are various recorded accounts in the centre about sightings of Nessie but the dredgings of the lake and scientific research today show that there is not much food in the lake, let alone enough to feed a large beast. I think there could have been something once but not for many years now. There was
Cruising on Loch Ness
No sign of the Lochness monster but in the background are the ruins of Urquhart castle a suggestion that Nessie could have been a large ocean species that had made its way into the lake for short period..who knows.
Still, the famous Nessie brings thousands of visitors to the area each year, and gives many locals work and a boost to the local economy. The recent summer was excellent we were told but this had also brought many visitors. The weather may not have been as kind us as we would have liked, but we did not have to deal with the thousands of tourists that were in the area a month before and we still saw some nice scenery both on the loch and driving through the area.
Our final tour day had come and very early in the morning it was time to catch a bus to Inverness where we were due to catch our train to Edinburgh. The large 13 carriage train we were due to catch was bound for London Kings Cross station, a full days journey compared to our 3 hours. We were happy to be booked into first class, but what impressed me even more was that breakfast was to be served on the train to first class passengers, free of charge. The menu choice was varied and the food served lovely. I think it may have been an omelette with haloumi cheese that I ordered and it was one of the nicer breakfasts on the tour.
My fellow travellers told me that breakfast was usually included in the cost of a first class ticket for all longer train journeys throughout the UK. From previous travels. I knew already that the train service around the UK was extensive, one of the reasons I chose to book a railway tour of Scotland. I would certainly do it again and have noted the features of first class travel for future reference!
It was time to say goodbye to my fellow travellers that evening at our farewell dinner. I had gotten to know some people well and exchanged contact details in case there was a chance we could meet again in Australia or the UK.
Not only had I enjoyed the company of my fellow travellers, but also the friendly hospitality of the locals from all across Scotland. The Scottish people are proud of their region and heritage, so much so that in one years time the residents of Scotland will vote for Scotland to become an independent nation in its own right. The pros and cons of this were discussed in the local media whilst I was in Scotland and also amongst some of the Britons on tour. Scotland is clearly a region with much to offer and very much its own identity, whether it remains part of the UK or not. No matter what the voting outcome, Scotland is an area I would be happy to visit again given the chance.
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david thomas
non-member comment
your travels
the train trip appears to be the way to go in Scotland.....really enjoyed what you had to say Missed you at Madges 70th birthday We are off to Hawaii next week for 15 days. Enjoy the rest of your holiday David and Jenny