All language subtitles for The Worlds Most Scenic Railway Journeys S03E02 1080p WEB DL H264 BTN_track3_[eng]

Escape with us on
a legendary voyage through

the western Scottish Highlands,

as we pass through some of the
world's most spectacular scenery

en route to the glorious
Isle of Skye.

It's a little ice-age gem.

It's absolutely astounding.

On this incredible journey,

we travel through landscapes
steeped in folklore and myth...

It just oozes history.

You get the smell of
that in your body

as soon as you come up here.

..pass through an ancient landscape
of hills and lochs...

You're so aware of the seasons
changing around you.

..a land filled
with tradition and story.

It was a way of life very close
to the land and to nature.

Oh, I wouldn't be anywhere else!

We'll meet the people who live and
work along this special railway...

It is the most gorgeous place
up here.

Everyone's in awe when
they come off the train.

..before we arrive at
our enchanting destination.

Skye has an atmosphere
that I have never encountered

anywhere else in the world.

This is no ordinary railway journey.

This is one of the most scenic
railway journeys in the world -

the West Highland Line, Scotland.

TRAIN WHISTLE TOOTS

Our journey begins in Glasgow,

Scotland's largest city.

It's a world-class cultural gem,

famed for its ship-building heritage
and rich history.

The city's latest architectural
highlight is Queen Street station

in the heart of downtown Glasgow.

It's here, at precisely
12.23 each weekday,

that passengers board
an unassuming train,

a Class 156 diesel multiple-unit,

to embark on one of the most magical
scenic railway journeys

in the world.

GUARD'S WHISTLE BLOWS

WOMAN: Ladies and gentlemen,
the front two coaches are

for stations to Oban and
the rear four coaches are going

to Fort William and Mallaig.

Our four-carriage train
soon weaves its way

into the lowlands beyond Glasgow.

It's a route whose passing
landscapes inspired poets and

writers, and is a favourite
of veteran rail ambassador

and railway aficionado John.

It's extraordinary
how the journey unfolds

and the train takes you to places
that the roads cannot reach.

It's also, in a sense, a journey
that keeps on developing.

You might call it, in that sense,
the gift that keeps on giving.

The first leg of our
200-mile journey takes us

through Loch Lomond and
the Trossachs National Park.

Stopping at Ardlui, we then
journey north through

the remote Western Highlands,

pulling in at Upper Tyndrum,

then Corrour,
Britain's highest station,

and Fort William, home to
the country's tallest peak.

Finally we cross the famous
Glenfinnan Viaduct

before arriving at
our destination, Mallaig,

gateway to the Isle of Skye.

30 miles into our journey,

our train enters Loch Lomond
and the Trossachs National Park...

..with salt-water Loch Long
on one side of the tracks

and the south of Loch Lomond
on the other.

At the heart of this
720-square-mile wilderness

is Britain's largest
inland stretch of water.

Loch Lomond contains
over 30 separate islands,

a miraculous ancient landscape
that park ranger Jim

gets to regularly patrol.

So we've just passed over
the Highland Boundary Fault here

and this is where two plates over
thousands and thousands of years -

40 million years, in fact -
came crashing together

and pushed these islands up.

Albeit over a long period of time,

there's a geological drama going on.

One of the islands near
the southern end is Inchcailloch,

a protected gem
unchanged for decades.

You just never know
what you're going to see.

I thought I was about to
see my first otter

and it turned out it was a squirrel.

I didn't know squirrels could swim
at the time, but they obviously can.

All this woodland here is
Atlantic oak woodland,

which forms part of
this Celtic rainforest.

The conditions here are ideal.
It's wet and mild,

and it has really, really
good air quality,

which makes the perfect conditions
for growing not just these trees

but all these mosses and lichens,

which gives it
this really lush appeal.

This is one of the most
diverse habitats in the UK.

At the top of island,
Pinus sylvestris - or Scots pine.

These rare trees are
a living remnant

of Scotland's original
temperate rainforest

that first grew here
almost 10,000 years ago.

I think this is one of my
favourite views in

the whole of the national park.

The size of the landscape,
the variety of habitats,

it means peace to me.

I see such a big landscape,
such a lot going on in it,

all the different habitats

and the associated wildlife
and people that are inside that.

It really is a very special place.

Far below, our train weaves its way
through mile after mile

of dense woodland that
surrounds the loch.

The forests are back now.
Oh, yeah, now the forests are back,

so that's nice.

We like... We prefer the forests.

It's a really exciting journey.
It's beautiful.

So Tarbet is the Gaelic for
"the place where they drag

"the boats", so if you come to
a place called Tarbet

it's usually on an isthmus,
a narrow piece of land

between two lochs.

And this is no exception
because this Tarbet lies

between Loch Long and Loch Lomond.

It's from here in days gone by
that Viking raiders would launch

their boats to ambush unsuspecting
settlers.

Following in their footsteps today
is a different kind of warrior.

Local wild swimmer Bev won't be
taking on the loch dwellers

but she will be trying
to conquer water

that can reach as low as
four degrees Celsius.

Going into the water may
be considered the worst part

but it's also the most
exciting part.

It's the bit when you're fighting
your own natural instincts.

We call ourselves
the Callander Coven,

because there's three of us
mostly swim together,

and we cackle like witches
every time we get in the water.

Warm water, I think we call...
It's OK. Or it's braw.

When it's not OK, well, it's also
a lot of swearing at times.

Some days in the depths of winter
you do question your own sanity.

But once you're in, it's
a completely full-body experience.

It's incredible.

You're submersed in
one element completely,

and then you look at the landscape -

you're so aware of the seasons
changing around you.

You're so in tune with
every one of your senses.

You're listening, looking, feeling

because you're always
in that moment.

It's musical.

Even when the weather is grim
and dreich and misty,

every day is a different experience.

On really calm days,
when the loch is still

and the wind is blowing in the west,

you'll hear the train just
working its way up the track

in the distance.

And that's a lovely sound.

Next, our train journeys north,
deeper into the Trossachs,

to enter a landscape steeped
in history, legend and folklore.

I've had some strange experiences
of the fairy kingdom.

TRAIN WHISTLE TOOTS

We're 70 miles into one of the
world's most scenic railway journeys

through the western
Scottish Highlands.

Our final destination is Mallaig
and the Isle of Skye.

Our journey continues on
through the northern reaches

of the national park,

stopping at Ardlui and
Upper Tyndrum,

home of one of Scotland's
best-kept geological secrets,

before entering the rugged heart
of the western Highlands.

So we're now climbing out of
the Loch Lomond system of rivers

and we're now in the country of
Rob Roy MacGregor,

who was Scotland's favourite bandit,
a sort of Robin Hood character,

robbing the rich
to benefit the poor.

I think this is the first full glory
of the Highlands that you're seeing.

By the time our train pulls
in to Ardlui,

we're deep in the Trossachs.

The station itself -
an ancient Gaelic name

that means "high ground
of the calves" -

echoes a sweeping landscape beyond
that is rich in legend and folklore.

MAN SINGS TO HIMSELF

That'll do, Jess. That'll do.

Fergus is the last farmer
in his valley

to still follow crofting traditions

that date back
to the era of Highland clans.

Stay there. Good girl.

Just stay there, Jess.
I don't need you in here just now.

Now, ladies, let's have
a look at you.

How are we doing?

Easy. Steady now, steady now,
steady.

There we go.

Ah, you're a fine-looking bunch!

Fergus keeps traditional
Highland breeds

on his 500-year-old Ledard Farm.

It just oozes history.

And you get the smell of that
in your body

as soon as you come up here.

It's closer to the soil.
Your senses are much stronger.

Celtic people tend to be close
to the supernatural.

I've had some strange experiences
of the fairy kingdom.

Some years ago we had
a festival featuring New Zealand

and we brought the Maori
concert party to do

all their singing and dancing
and all the rest,

and with them came a holy man,

and he was tattooed from his
forehead to the tip of his toes.

And when he was up here, he said,

"Well, take me to the Fairy Knowe,
to the fairy hill."

So we took them up here. This is
a guy from 12,000 miles away,

by the way

Now, as soon as we got up there,
he started to get excited

and he produced a kind of
whistly thing and he was playing it

and then he said, "I can see them."
I said, "You're joking."

"No," he said, "Look at the tree.

"There on the tree
on the left-hand branch,

"the main one on the left,
you'll see them."

Now, we couldn't see anybody but
the branch - and there was no wind -

was going up and down,
as if people were sitting on it.

And he said,
"They're laughing at us.

"And now they've jumped over
to the other side."

And, sure enough, the branch
on the other side started going

up and down. So we were a wee bit
freaked out at this.

We don't mock the fairies round
here. And I believe in them, yeah.

The Trossachs haven't just made
a fine home for fairies.

They were also the stomping ground
of Scotland's own Robin Hood,

Rob Roy MacGregor.

During the 17th century,
the young clansman took refuge

in the wild forests
that surround Fergus's farm.

As a young man he even used the barn
that still stands here today.

Jess. Come on, Jess.

Okey dokey, here we go.

So this is MacGregor's barn,

and of course young Rob came
in here in October 1689

to be welcomed and introduced
to the company of men.

That was the standard thing
at harvest time,

the Feast of the Hairst Kirn,
when young men who'd turned 18

joined the company
of their fellow men.

And, of course, the buzz at
that particular dinner

was the battle that had been fought,

involving 50 MacGregors
from here, including Rob Roy,

the Battle of Killiecrankie.

So everybody was talking
about that battle

and indeed the chairman
of the evening invited Rob

to give a wee account of the battle.

So he stood up as a young man
and he gave his account

of the Battle of Killiecrankie
as he saw it.

Six centuries on, Fergus plays
a traditional folk song

with his son, Gregor,
that honours this heroic saga,

outside the same barn
where young Rob Roy once grew

from child to man.

THEY PLAY A GENTLE, LILTING MELODY

MUSIC FADES AWAY

100 miles into our journey,

forest gives way to wild moorland.

Upper Tyndrum, that serves a nearby
rural town, population less

than 200, at first appears to be
a quiet, ordinary-looking station.

But passengers alighting here
will be blissfully unaware

that inside a grey, A-listed
waiting room

lies a clue to the country's
shiniest secret.

On a quest to find it,
exploration geologist Charlie.

Scotland is really rich in gold.

There's actually some records
of gold being found

as early as the 1600s

and that is where they found
gold nuggets in rivers.

But it's not always easy
to find gold here.

And Tyndrum station is really
useful for us

because it's right in the middle
of quite a prospective area.

But not every station
in the world has its very own

Lara Croft on Platform 1.

In the summer we get lots
of walkers coming past.

They always want to know when
the train's coming,

can they buy a ticket from me,

but, unfortunately, no,
I'm not the ticket officer

so I can't issue them anything.

When not redirecting
lost passengers,

Charlie is out on site,
deep inside the Cononish Mine,

which they believe sits on top
of a huge vein of gold.

But only by investigating thousands
of core samples,

drilled down to 200 metres,
will Charlie be able to find

the best place to extract the ore.

I'm just going to spray them
with water.

That really helps to bring out
the different colours.

Sometimes we get really great pieces

and there can be as much
as 5, 10, 20, 40,

50, 60 grammes per tonne of gold.

Worldwide, that would be considered
a really high-grade deposit.

Usually pretty shiny,
so shiny means gold.

TRAIN HORN SOUNDS

Leaving behind Tyndrum's
hidden bonanza,

our train now winds its way slowly

through one of Scotland's
remotest landscapes.

And the views just get better.

Every time you lift your head up
and look out the window,

it's something different.

Really incredible.
Really mesmerising.

Yeah, it's definitely picturesque.

We were just saying that it's
probably the best view

that I've ever seen from
a train my whole life so far.

It's stunning.

But this stunning scenery
hides a dark secret.

During the 19th century,

the challenging mountain terrain
had discouraged

the building of a railway here.

But when construction on the
West Highland Line finally began

in the 1890s,

the dirty work was left
to seasonal migrant labourers -

the navvies.

Many were from Ireland,

the forgotten heroes of
railway history.

The 3,000 navvies and more
who worked on it

found it very, very difficult

because we didn't have mechanical
shovels in these days, excavators.

It was mostly done by hand.

They worked in atrocious
winter conditions.

And, of course, there were
many accidents.

When darkness fell,
they lost their way and

they were never seen again.

By the time the construction
had reached

the steep valley
five miles north of Tyndrum,

the railway money had run out.

And building a one-mile long bridge
across marshy ground

was far too expensive.

So they decided to go round in
a horseshoe shape over two viaducts

to get to Rannoch Moor,

a big feat of endurance and,
actually, as railways go,

probably unique in Britain.

Here comes the train now
and heading for the first viaduct.

It's now crossed the second
of the two viaducts

at the entrance to Glen Lyon.

It'll run round the flanks
of this mountain

before it heads for Rannoch Moor.

And when our train eventually
reaches Rannoch Moor,

passengers are greeted with one of
the most spectacular scenes

on any railway journey in the world.

It's just got complete scenery
both sides of the carriage.

So you've got a full 360 view.

TRAIN WHISTLE BLOWS

We're halfway through one of
the most scenic railway journeys

in the world,

the West Highland Line in Scotland.

It's a five-hour voyage from
Glasgow to Mallaig.

This is meant to be
one of the most beautiful

train journeys in the world.

I didn't know what to expect.

I mean, it's just quite
a stark contrast

to what we're used to
on a train journey.

You'll be in, like, a green field,
or in a forest,

then suddenly a massive loch
or a big mountain will appear.

Our train now shoots through
the wild interior

of the western Scottish Highlands
to stop at Corrour,

Britain's highest station,

and Fort William, that sits next to
the tallest mountain in the country.

Rising to over 1,200 feet,

Rannoch Moor is an upland plateau
surrounded on all sides

by barren hills and peat bogs.

Its sweeping views have come
to define the elemental beauty

of the Scottish Highlands.

Less well known is
the moorland's secret kingdom

of ancient glacial lochs...

..some of which can be accessed
from Rannoch Moor station,

altitude 1,000 feet.

Just a short walk away, Loch Laidon,

a favourite escape
of locals Gordon and Ron.

I was up at Loch an Duin
with Jim Brown,

the butcher in Blair Atholl.

Right, OK. And I had
a wee Mepps spoon,

and I caught six and he caught none.

We stopped for a cup of tea
and a wee bite to eat

and we went back out with
the same tackle,

and he caught six and I caught none.
All right.

Well, that's fishing for you,
isn't it? That's why we do it.

You've never actually got it sussed.

Aye, the midgies are getting
pretty bad again.

Bloody midgies are horrendous
the now. Yeah, absolutely.

This is prime midgie weather.
Indeed. They just love it.

Yeah. No wind, bit of sunshine,
a bit of warmth.

I'm quite sure, Gordon,
that when mother-in-laws die

they come up to Loch Laidon
and get reincarnated as midgies

and attack innocent men.

GORDON LAUGHS
I think they do, aye.

Just because we're enjoying
ourselves fishing.

This is Scotland.

Commit any crime you like
as long as you don't enjoy it.

When not swatting midges,

Ron is a distinguished
marine biologist

specialising in Highland
fish species.

He's discovered that four
genetically distinct species of

brown trout have evolved here
at Loch Laidon.

It's a little ice-age gem.

We're a kind of aquatic Galapagos

because we've got the same kind
of evolutionary processes going on,

with different body shapes,
head shapes,

just like the Galapagos finches
have different beaks

for eating different foods.

To be able to discover new species
in your own back yard

is absolutely... It's just...

The word is gobsmacking.

One species lives almost
completely in the dark,

below 120 feet.

Another eats fish up to
a third of its size.

The ferox is a freshwater wolf
from the Ice Age.

It really is the last of
the ice-age megafauna,

when the mammoths and the muskox
and the bears were

all round about here.

But catching one requires some
rather unorthodox methods.

This is called trolling.

Basically, it's a lure that imitates
a sick or injured fish.

So we're trying to initiate
a strike.

It's a kind of bovine activity.

It's not particularly
sophisticated but it works.

Oh, you know when you've
caught a ferox.

That rod will just about hit
Gordon in the face.

No ice-age wolf on the line today,

but Gordon offers a masterclass
in fly fishing.

That's another one of these
black-spotted ones.

It's consistent with their diet with
salmon, feeding near the surface.

Yeah. A bigger one.
Aye, it's a nice fish, yeah.

Aye. And that little rod. You can
see why you're getting them. I know.

It's a fighting chance -
you're fishing fair, unlike me.

Aye, I know, yeah.
LAUGHTER

Yeah. Pull this line in. Yeah.

Lovely.

Oh!

Oh, there we go. He's off. He's off!

Less than a few long casts
from the railway tracks,

our train continues across
Rannoch Moor,

gently ascending towards
Britain's highest station.

We're going to Corrour
for a couple of days

to stay in the old Signal Box.

The station can only be
accessed by train.

There's no roads or
footpaths nearby.

So it's going to be really nice
to be completely cut off

and just be alone
with the beautiful scenery.

Staying overnight
in Scotland's remotest station

may not be everyone's idea
of a great escape,

but a stopover in Corrour's
Signal Box provides you

with unbridled access to some of
Scotland's finest moorland walks...

..followed by a hearty meal
on Britain's

highest platform restaurant.

So people come up and
they'll have big parties

because they've climbed
all of the 282 Munros in Scotland

and this is their last one.

You've just got the best views.

There's nowhere like it
in the country.

Out of every window
there's a spectacular view.

It is very vast
but it is one big bog,

so that's what we always refer to -
it's just "the bog".

Lots of heather and lots of deer.

And, yeah, quite a barren landscape
up here. But it's lovely.

Beautifully barren.

Well, you can get some
sort of spooky evenings up here

and there's a few characters around.

And there's two hermits which
live on the loch.

There's one proper hermit and one
sort of fake hermit, we call him.

So Ken, who's the real hermit,
he lives in the woodlands

and he's travelled the world and
this is his most favourite place.

He's got about three or four
log cabins

and he's lived in there for
the last 30 years.

And there's another hermit who lives
at the other end of the loch.

He's stayed in a two-man tent
for the last ten years

and he's been planting lots
of trees, which is one miracle.

So he's an awfully nice guy.

With the B&B based on Platform 2,

there's no excuse
for missing the train -

unless, of course, you fancy hanging
around here a few years as a hermit.

We know all the conductors
on the line.

Our favourite one is a woman called
Suzie. She's such a character.

If you get a chance to
go on the train,

she'll be singing down the Tannoy.

The West Highland Line is one of
the most beautiful railways.

It's just got complete scenery
both sides of the carriage.

You've got a full... Full 360 view.

With its magnetic beauty,

it's no wonder passengers
from all over the world make

their own pilgrimages to
the West Highlands,

including a tour of Ben Nevis,
Britain's highest mountain.

We're camping below
Ben Nevis tonight

and then walking
the mountain tomorrow.

So we've been training,
so hopefully it goes well.

For outdoor enthusiasts,
Fort William is

the launching-off point
for big adventures.

Some people walk
the 4,500-foot mountain.

Others run!

Local twins, Fraser and Ruaraidh,

both have an equal passion
for hill running.

I just love the simplicity
of running.

Just with a pair of shoes
and we can run anywhere.

When you're running,
the senses change so much,

so the smells of the grass,
the trees

and then just the way the grass
and trees change colour

during the seasons as well. Mm.
It's really visual.

I think that's the beauty of it.
Aye, aye.

But today's run to Steall Falls,
Scotland's biggest waterfall,

is just a warm-up.

These twins are training
to scale Ben Nevis and back

in less than two hours.

So if you ask me who you think
is the better runner,

I would say me.

I'm usually quite a bit faster
than Ruaraidh.

But I know on the Ben Nevis race
that Ruaraidh's, what,

20 seconds ahead? 40, I think.

Oh, all right. 40 seconds ahead.

Usually my big toe gets it.
Aye, aye.

We've had a few races where
we've crossed the line together.

While our runners brace themselves
for their next ascent,

railway workers at Fort William
prepare our train

for the final stretch to Mallaig.

The last 40 miles of the route
travel northwest,

crossing Glenfinnan Viaduct

before reaching
the Atlantic coastline

and our destination, Mallaig,

gateway to the magnificent
Isle of Skye.

After skirting
the picturesque Loch Eil,

our train approaches one of
Scotland's greatest landmarks.

Glenfinnan Viaduct is sometimes
nicknamed the Harry Potter Crossing

after featuring in
the famous fantasy movie.

I heard about the train journey

because it's the one the
Hogwarts Express is based on.

So I didn't know what to expect.

But, erm, no chocolate frogs,
but it's been beautiful.

However, it's not just the scene
in Harry Potter that has sealed

its fame, but its place
in world engineering history

as revealed in the museum on
Platform 1, run by Hege.

What Harry Potter fans
don't perhaps know is that

the reason why the Glenfinnan
Viaduct was so famous

is that, like all of
the viaducts on this line,

it's built from concrete.

It's built from mass concrete.

During the end of the 19th century,

the pioneering Victorian engineer
Sir Robert McAlpine,

nicknamed Concrete Bob,
won the contract

to build much of
the West Highland Line.

Oh, it just wouldn't have been built
because it was impossible to do it

in any other way
for the money available.

We just wouldn't have had
a railway line if not.

All 21 arches of the bridge
were constructed

in preformed mass concrete.

In engineering terms,
this was revolutionary.

It started here.

This was the first contract
that concrete was used exclusively

for the full line, and we all know
what a fabulous role

it has played in engineering
ever since.

I look at it and think,

"This concrete, this grey,
old concrete, is gorgeous." Mm.

And just behind the station, another
reason to get off at Glenfinnan -

Loch Shiel.

Here, as a young man,
the now 89-year-old Tearlach

would once roam the hills barefoot.

That is, until he discovered
the wheel.

A perfect day would be
for me to put the bicycle

into my little sailing boat
and row across the loch

and take the bike out onto the top
on the pointed hill over there

and then come down in the corrie

and dive into a rock pool.

Spectacular scenery.

Oh, I wouldn't be anywhere else!

Looming over the head of the loch,
its most famous landmark,

the monument to
the Unknown Highlander.

It commemorates
the Jacobite uprising,

one of Scotland's bleakest
periods of history.

It was here in 1745
that Scottish clans gathered

in support of Bonnie Prince Charlie,

who claimed his right
as heir to the British throne.

Well, this was where the prince
raised his standard.

There would have been
over 1,000 people there.

It was more or less
at the centre of the area

that was sympathetic to the cause.

It's exactly 275 years ago today

that the clans mustered.

In the end, the British
crushed the uprising.

But with defeat went
an ancient clan way of life.

No, it was... It was...

..much worse than people realise.

It brought an end to a culture,
a way of life,

very, very close to the land
and to nature.

The bond between the land
and the people was very strong.

It was in a sense
a classless kind of community

because the chief was looked on
as the father of the people

and the people all looked upon
themselves as part of the family.

Although the clan system was
largely destroyed centuries ago,

within feet of our railway tracks
ancient Scottish traditions

still linger.

Music and poetry and story were
all very much part of it all too.

And, yes, the story was important.
Very important, yes, yeah.

And the story of our journey
is soon to reach

its final, riveting chapter along
west Scotland's coast

as it glides towards our
destination - Mallaig and Skye.

TRAIN WHISTLE TOOTS

It's the final stretch
of our 200-mile train journey

aboard Scotland's
West Highland Line.

For the first time, passengers get
a glimpse of the coast.

So here the railway to the isles
is approaching

its magnificent conclusion.

Mallaig is a jumping-off point
to the islands

and also to the coastline beyond.

After five hours' travel across
Western Scotland

our train glides in to
the coastal station of Mallaig.

But this is far from the end
of our Highland journey

because just across the water...

..lies one of the most enchanting
island landscapes in the world.

WOMAN: Skye is known as
the Misty Isle for good reason.

The moving mist,
the changing light -

you have four seasons in one day.

The Skye landscape is magical.

It's ever-changing,

and never do I tire
of looking at the same view.

An atmosphere that I have
never encountered

anywhere else in the world.

Isabella is a daughter
of the Macdonald clan chief.

Their family roots date back
more than 800 years.

We can trace ourselves back to 1140,

when Somerled married Ragnhilda,
the daughter of Olaf the Red,

so going back to Viking times.

For me, the clan and being part
of the Clan Macdonald

is something I feel very proud of.

So there's an awareness of
the history and the heritage,

which is poignant.

The clan's former hunting lodge
has now been converted

into a boutique hotel
and restaurant.

But the house remains a treasure
trove of clan history.

The lodge sits right on the edge
of Loch na Dal.

It's part of Skye's unique landscape

that lures visitors
from all over the world

for its traditional Highland fare.

As an island,
we're surrounded by water.

You can taste the beauty
of the scenery -

the shellfish, the fish,
is second to none...

..and is just rich in what I call
the natural larder.

One of Skye's most sought-after
delicacies

are the island's fresh scallops.

How's it going, buddy?
Good. How are you? I'm good, yeah.

And how are they today?

Fresh as always. Awesome.

Let's see how good these are.

Ooh! Hand-dived this morning.

Always beautiful.

Super scallop.

They are unlike any scallop
I've ever come across

in any other part of the world.

They are like steaks, almost,

and even eaten raw they are sweet
and delicious and succulent.

Skye is a real foodie destination.

I could go on forever about
reasons for people to visit Skye.

BAGPIPES: The Skye Boat Song

This enchanting isle is a land
steeped in ancient history

and spectacular scenery...

..and a place with
the warmest of welcomes -

a fitting end to our journey.

On our epic, 200-mile trip
from Glasgow to Mallaig,

we have travelled across some of
Scotland's finest landscapes,

met living legends,

discovered its hidden treasures

and even caught ice-age megafauna.

Our West Highland voyage has been
a truly magnificent railway journey.