The Iron Horse by Kentigern

This is a song about a Scottish train called the Iron Horse by Kentigern. The wonderful vocals here are by Sylvia Barnes. Kentigern was a group formed in 1978 out of a regular session at the Victoria Bar, Glasgow. John Gahagan (whistle) had been a member of The Battlefield Band, and with Jimmy McGuire (fiddle, banjo) combined with the four members of Tinkler Maidgie - Sandy Stanage (cittern, guitar, banjo) (who had also been in Molendinar), Ian MacDonald (pipes), Jim Barnes (cittern, guitar, vocals) and Sylvia Barnes (vocals, dulcimer, guitar, bodhran) - to form Kentigern. Dougie Pincock (pipes, whistle) replaced Ian MacDonald. The photos with the music were taken in Scotland of the stream train known as the Jacobite. This ride is often described as one of the great railway journeys of the world. The 84 mile round trip takes you past a list of impressive extremes. Starting near the highest mountain in Britain, Ben Nevis, it visits Britain's most westerly mainland railway station, Arisaig; passes close by the deepest freshwater loch in Britain, Loch Morar and the shortest river in Britain, River Morar, finally arriving next to the deepest seawater loch in Europe, Loch Nevis.

Harry Potter Movie Train is the the Jacobite

The Jacobite Steam Train is run by West Coast Railways, a company based in England that runs a few other railway lines. They have only been operating the Jacobite since 1995, but it is now their most successful line, thanks to the popularity of the Harry Potter films.

The journey goes through some of Scotland’s most splendid scenery. Starting in Fort William, it travels along the shores of Loch Eil, stops for half an hour at Glenfinnan and continues to Mallaig, where there is a ferry service to the Isle of Skye.

The highlight of the journey is when the train crosses the Glenfinnan viaduct, where passengers get a stunning view towards the Glenfinnan Monument and Loch Shiel.

If you miss the train, or if it is full, then the A830 road from Fort William to Mallaig drives very close to the railway line, and there are several small bridges that you can stand on whilst the train passes below you. The train only does about 50mph so it’s easy to keep pace with its route.

For a great photo, be at the Glenfinnan Visitor Centre at 11.20 am or 3.00 pm when the train crosses the viaduct: a “magic” sight for Harry Potter fans.

Jim's ride on the Jacobite

http://www.westcoastrailways.co.uk/Jacobite.cfm

Steaming and stomping though the Highlands

My husband Jim is now in Scotland and I hope to share some of his adventures here soon. His first big adventure will be riding the steam train from Fort William to Mallaig know as the Jacobite. It will cease running until next season at the end of the month so Jim just managed to get a ticket before it shuts down until next year. This line is the one used in the Harry Potter films and it is really an amazing ride from what we have read.