The social and political history of this route and of course the wildlife is fascinating. Here are a few comments on certain sections of the line.

This section of the West Highland line, the Fort William to Mallaig extension, became reality following an Act passed in the House of Commons in 1896. Lady Margaret Cameron of Locheil cut the first sod on the 21st January 1897 from which point the contractors, Robert McAlpine and Son, were allowed 5 years 6 months to construct the 40 miles of track. The task was completed by April 1901.

From Fort William the train crosses the River Lochy with the ruined Inverlochy Castle on the east side of the river. After crossing the river the train travels along a flat expanse called the Corpach Moss with houses to the left and the Great Glen stretching into the distance to the right. The Great Glen is a spectacular valley running for over 60 miles between Loch Linnhe in the south west and Inverness and Moray Firth in the north east.

The train slows down near the far end of the Moss to Cross the Caledonian Canal. To the left of the train there is Neptune's Staircase a row of locks that raise the canal to a height of 65 feet. The longest lock gate system in Britain and built during the Napoleonic Wars.

The definition of Corpach has always been debated. One of the most popular definitions is the resting place of the bodies. In the olden times the quickest form of transport was by sea and people of note were carried from all points of the compass to Corpach where they were transported for burial to one of the many important burial places in the region - Eilan Munda the sacred island Loch Leven by Glencoe, The Green Isle of St Finnans at the bottom of Loch Sheil and of course the Island of Iona.

It was here that Bonnie Prince Charlie raised the standard for the Jacobite uprising in August 1745. To arrive at the station the train has to cross the world famous Glenfinnan viaduct. It was the first concrete built viaduct in the world and was, for many years, the largest bridge to be built using this construction material. The viaduct itself has 21 arches and curves towards the station for 416 yards and stands 100 feet high and is instantly recognisable to all devotees of the Harry Potter films in which the viaduct has appeared in.

From the train you can look down Loch Shiel. The loch itself is 17 miles long and arrives at Acharacle at the southern end. The area directly in front of the loch is largely owned by the National Trust for Scotland in the centre of its property is the Glenfinnan Monument erected by MacDonald of Glenalladale in 1815. 65 feet high it commemorates the raising of Prince Charles Stewarts standard on 19th August 1745.

At Glenfinnan Station there is the fascinating Glenfinnan Railway Station Museum, which has developed within the old railway buildings. The museum has information on the construction of the viaduct and may other fascinating aspects of the development of the line.

Lochailort is well known for having firsts. Here, during the construction of the railway, as there were over 2000 navvies living here, the first construction site hospital in Britain was established with 8 beds, 2 nurses and a doctor. Lochailort was also the first site of fish farms now seen all over Scotland. It was established in 1969, by the then Marine Harvest. Inverailort Castle was one of the first headquarters for the Commandos during the 2nd World War before the Commandos moved their centre for training to Achnacarry Castle north of Fort William.

At the time of the construction of the line much of the money needed for the building was put up by landowners and indeed some crofters, as they could all see the benefit of the line, not only for general use, but also for their own personal gain. The estate on which Beasdale sits is a fine example of this. When the line was conceived the station at Beasdale was not included. The owner of the estate, after putting up money asked if a station could be built at Beasdale so he and his guests could use the train to gain quick access to his estate. As he was willing to pay there was no complaint and the station was built. To this day the station is still considered as a private station and even on a normal service train it is a request stop. So if you want the train to stop here you have to stick your hand out otherwise the train carries on.

The British mainland's most westerly railway station with its bay and harbour. The area is home to a variety of wildlife and with views to the small isles of Eigg, Rum, Muck and Canna. The name Arisaig derives from Norse not Gaelic. Aris meaning river mouth and vaig meaning bay.

Here the wonderful white sands on a clear day offer a Caribbean type landscape. The sands were made of good use in the films Local Hero and also Highlander

Shortly before Morar the train crosses Britain's shortest river the River Morar that is only ½ a mile long. It originated in Loch Morar Britain's deepest inland loch of over 1000 feet in depth.

When the train first arrived at the village it consisted of a few cottages and the notoriety of being the point where Bonnie Prince Charlie returned to the mainland after his wanderings with Flora MacDonald in the Outer Hebrides. However, with the opening of the line in 1901, the harbour was built, another task taken on by the engineers of the line and before long, Mallaig became one of the most important fishing ports on the western coast of Britain - a position it still holds to this day.