The West Highland Line in Scotland is widely regarded as one of the most picturesque railways in the world. The final section from Fort William to Mallaig also contains the Glenfinnan Viaduct made famous in the first Harry Potter movie and fans can now ride a Potter-esque steam train between these stations and experience the thrill of a journey to Hogwarts!
The Jacobite, run by West Coast Railways, runs twice a day and covers the route in about 90 minutes. While it’s not advertised as a specifically Harry Potter themed offering, there are plenty of HP trinkets available for purchase and most of the riders seemed to be there more for the books than the scenery. We took it last Thursday, leaving Fort William on the morning train at about 10:30 and having an hour or so for lunch in Mallaig before reboarding and returning to Fort William by about 4pm that afternoon.
The views from the train are spectacular but, from a photographer’s perspective, it was frustrating since the windows weren’t particularly clear (mostly raindrops rather than dust) and they can’t be opened. Holding anything past the plane of the window is absolutely verboten and will get you yelled at by crew members as I discovered when I accidentally moved my lens hood an inch too far while trying to stand inside and take pictures through the small sliding window by our compartment.
The actual locomotive used on the route can vary. There are a couple of steam engines used (we were pulled by “The Lancashire Fusilier”, a 4-6-0 engine of the LMS Class 5MT type built between 1934 and 1951) but you may find yourself behind a historic 1960s or 70s era diesel locomotive in some cases.
For the technically inclined...