Our adventures in Scotland, Part 5

Our next big adventure was a trip on the Harry Potter train from Fort William to Mallaig. We thought the nice lady and Carlos would come too, but when we said it would take 2.5 hours to drive from Stirling to Fort William, they blanched and said they would stay at home!

So, we headed off early in the car, with Bev whizzing round the lanes, across Rannoch Moor, through Glencoe and on to Fort William in time to catch the train. Paul parked the car while Bev rushed off to the station to get the tickets, only to discover that they were sold out! Oh no! However, there were some spare tickets at the guard's van, so Paul and Bev went there and got 2 first class tickets on the beautiful Jacobite steam train.

On the way to Mallaig Bev and Paul had to sit with other people, so Paul sat with a nice group of people who chatted about the scenery and the train. Bev, on the other paw, had to sit with a group of Americans tourists, who not only ignored her completely, but slept all the way from Fort William to Mallaig! Doh! What was the point in going on the train if you weren't going to admire the beautiful scenery along the route to Mallaig? Never mind, Bev listened to her iPod and delighted in the wild scenery.

When we got to Fort William, we piled out the train and into a fish restaurant, where we had the most amazing haddock and chips. They were YUMMY!

And then it was time for the return journey on the train, with Bev and Paul having seats together this time. It was very relaxing, and again the scenery was fantastic. The Americans slept on the way back, though when they awoke they amused Bev and Paul by saying that they wanted to travel the world! Travelling the world is not the same as sleeping your way around the world - travel is supposed to engage you and expand your mind, it is not supposed to be time when you partake of the big zeds! Doh!

You get fantastic views of the Glenfinnan viaduct on the way back, and the driver kindly slowed down so that people could take photographs. All in all, it was a great day out, and the drive back through a mean and moody Glencoe was the icing on the cake!