Steam through the Highlands with BBC star Carol Kirkwood
MoS exclusive: Join weather presenter on the famous Jacobite train
TRAVELLING by steam train is a wonderful experience and there is nowhere more magical to do it than in the stunning Highlands. On this exclusive four-day break, you’ll be joined by the popular BBC weather presenter Carol Kirkwood, whose grandfather helped build the magnificent 21-arch Glenfinnan Viaduct, which also features in the Harry Potter films.
Your 41-mile steam-hauled journey on The Jacobite starts near Britain’s highest mountain, Ben Nevis. It passes our deepest freshwater loch, Loch Morar, and travels over the Glenfinnan Viaduct to arrive on the shores of the Atlantic next to Loch Nevis, one of the deepest seawater lochs in Europe.
You’ll pass through Morar, where Carol grew up, and she will tell stories of the Loch Morar monster, as well as her twice-weekly train journey to school in Fort William.
Your packed itinerary also includes some unique boat rides: one to and on The Falkirk Wheel boat lift; another on the SS Sir Walter Scott, one of the last surviving screwpropelled steamers; and a cruise on beautiful Loch Lomond.
REASONS TO BOOK
Ride The Jacobite
You’ll puff past rugged scenery, craggy coastlines and beautiful lochs on a line that opened in 1901 and is frequently voted the world’s greatest scenic railway. Carol Kirkwood will join you on your journey.
Stay in the Trossachs
The dramatic scenery of the Trossachs National Park inspired both Turner and Wordsworth and you’ll stay in the centre of it at The Winnock Hotel, an 18th Century inn close to the shores of Loch Lomond.
Travel with Carol Kirkwood
Popular BBC weather presenter Carol will give a talk about her life, career, love of Scotland and her time on TV’s Strictly Come Dancing. The region will be bought to life as Carol talks about growing up in Morar and her grandfather’s role in building the incredible Glenfinnan Viaduct.
Scenic lochs
Enjoy a 90-minute cruise on Loch Lomond and hear the story of Scotland’s celebrated outlaw Rob Roy. You’ll also sail the waters of Loch Katrine on SS Sir Walter Scott, which has been sailing there since 1900.
The unique Falkirk Wheel
The world’s only rotating boat lift, this will take you from the waters at New Port Downie to the Union Canal 115ft above.
Fascinating Scottish history
You’ll visit the mid-18th Century neo-Gothic Inveraray Castle, home of the Duke of Argyll, chief of the Clan Campbell.