Robert Hampton

The Scottish Government today announced that the new operator of the Caledonian Sleeper franchise from 2015 will be Serco. It’s another blow to First Group, who currently run the service (as part of ScotRail) and were hoping to win the new standalone sleeper franchise. With this and the Thameslink announcement last week, First have managed to lose two lucrative rail franchises in the space of seven days. Maybe they should change their name to Last!!!111

The Scottish Government’s announcement is a welcome vote of confidence in the future of the service, whose future has often been in doubt. When Victoria Wood travelled on it in the 1990s, the Fort William sleeper had just been reprieved from closure by British Rail. Nevertheless, it did seem that this expensive train, which doesn’t get anywhere near covering its costs, would be an early victim of the brave new business-led railway that was ushered in by privatisation.

Fortunately, the Scottish Government has an enlightened attitude to railways and is now proposing to splash the cash. A glossy brochure points out the coming attractions. The new rolling stock will have a mixture of berths (some with en suite bathrooms) and “podbeds” (seats that can be reclined flat, with privacy screens).

I have to admit, the slightly faded splendour of the former British Rail rolling stock was all part of the charm for me, so I’ll be sad to see the Mk3 coaches retired. I’m not sure how many of my fellow non-enthusiast passengers will share that view, so new rolling stock is welcome. I’ll be interested to see how features like en suite toilets can be fitted in without reducing capacity or sacrificing the ambience of the trains. A lot of press attention has focused on Serco’s Australian train operations, which include several luxury sleeper trains, but the Scottish sleepers are a slightly different market – they don’t just serve tourists, but business travellers too.

In any case, if you’ve been considering a trip on the sleeper and have been putting it off, I think you should go now, before the experience changes out of all recognition in 2018 when the new rolling stock arrives. Tickets don’t have to be expensive – an Advance ticket to Fort William can be bought for under £70 if you book far enough in advance, and occasionally Bargain Berths are available for as little as £19. To whet your appetite, check out my blog from when I did the trip with my friend Ian, or Ian’s blog from when he did the trip with his friend Robert, or the video Ian and I made when we did the trip together.

Leaving Inverness behind, Ian and I set off for home. By extreme good fortune, although we had booked our train tickets separately, the seat reservation system had allocated us seats facing each other across a table. I was glad we had reservations, for the train was busy and became more crowded the further south we travelled.

A variety of personalities all jostled for space. I noticed a teenager wearing iPod earphones, who was turfed out of his seat on three separate occasions during the journey, when the person who had reserved it turned up to claim it. Immediately behind Ian, an American couple had settled in for the long journey to Edinburgh. The wife was reading a tabloid magazine, picking out stories of interest and loudly discussing them with her husband. We heard her opinions on Prince Charles (how could he pick Camilla over Lady Di?) and Simon Cowell (his new baby is a surrogate, like Neil Patrick Harris). Her husband, meanwhile, buried his head in a book called “Whiskeypedia”. By the end of our journey, Ian and I had our eye-rolls perfectly synchronised.

The automatic announcer on the train kept getting out of step with the station stops. For some reason, this seemed to amuse a group of people sitting at a table further down the carriage. Every time it announced the wrong station, gales of laughter were heard.

This train was also notable for the frankly alarming sign in the lavatory. Basically, don’t use this toilet if you have any genital piercings.

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Ian and I probably didn’t see the best side of Inverness. We didn’t arrive until after 5pm, just as the town was winding down for the day. Also, it was still chucking it down with rain, so we eschewed dampness in favour of our comfy hotel room.

The railway station is quite nice, though – a good mix of old and new. The modern concourse is adorned with relics from the Highland Railway past, including a crest honouring the company’s directors.

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I need to start by apologising to Logan, the guy manning the catering trolley on the 8.30 train to Mallaig. Ian and I used that train on both Wednesday and Thursday morning. On the second day, you recognised us, and tried to engage us in friendly conversation. Unfortunately Ian and I were both so struck by your good looks that we got tongue-tied and could only babble the briefest pleasantries while you pumped your hot water urn. Sorry about that, Logan. If it makes you feel better, all you missed out on was some awkward and borderline inappropriate flirting from two men who are roughly a decade older than you. Don’t take it personally. You did a good job and your hot chocolate was very nice.

Where I was I? Oh yes, travelogue…

For the second day in a row, we were heading to Mallaig. This was the last time we would travel on the West Highland Line on this trip, but I already knew I’d be back. I want to visit Arisaig (most westerly station in Britain, fact fans) and Glenfinnan (home to that-viaduct-from-the-Harry-Potter-films and a small railway museum).

Our destination was, once more, Mallaig Harbour. No tiny Knoydart Seabridge this time, however. Instead, we were going to board the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry to Skye. As it was included in the validity of our Highland Rover ticket, it seemed rude not to.

Our plan for the day was audacious in its scope. When Ian first suggested it to me, I thought he was mad. MAD, I tell you. Of course, I went along with it, because I am quite mad too.

First, we would take the ferry to Armadale. From there, a bus would take us to the small settlement of Broadford, where we would change to a second bus to continue over the Skye Bridge to Kyle of Lochalsh. There, we would rejoin the rail network and take a train to Inverness, where we would spend Thursday evening.

There is, of course, a direct bus from Fort William to Inverness which takes a little under two hours, but where’s the fun in that?

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My Highland fling continues over on the Station Master blog, with a visit to Rannoch station.

There are many, many blog posts to come, both here and on The Station Master blog.

It was hard to contain my excitement on Monday afternoon, as I boarded a Virgin train to London. Most people would regard travelling 200 miles south, in order to travel back north again by the same route, as slightly mad. But there was method in my madness: firstly, I was meeting my friend and regular partner in various rail-related adventures, Ian Jones, who was going to join me on the journey. Secondly, I wanted to get the fullest possible experience from ScotRail’s overnight Caledonian Sleeper service.

Neither Ian nor myself are sleeper virgins – we have both, at different times, “done” the Cornish sleeper – the Night Riviera – from Penzance to London Paddington (read Ian’s account here, and mine here). As special as that journey is, it pales in comparison to the Anglo-Scottish services. Sorry, First Great Western, but you are Star Trek Voyager compared to ScotRail’s Next Generation.

After sauntering down to Kings Cross for dinner at the Parcel Yard restaurant, we returned to Euston to begin our adventure. I’ve travelled countless times from Euston, but tonight felt different. There was not going to be an undignified dash to the platform to cram aboard a Pendolino tonight. On the departure board, alongside Watford Junction, Manchester Piccadilly and Tring, was an altogether more exotic train: the 21:15 to Inverness, Aberdeen and – yes! – Fort William.

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On Thursday it was time to say goodbye to Knoydart and head back to Glasgow. We boarded the morning ferry at Inverie Ferry Terminal (a fancy name for a small hut containing a bench and a toilet).

The boat deposited us safely back in Mallaig just before 12 o’clock, and we immediately headed back to the station to work out our plan of action. Our goal: secure a place on the Jacobite steam train to Fort William. We had tried to book tickets online but had been told they were all sold out. The web site did offer a slim ray of hope, however: some tickets are sold on the day by the train crew. I therefore wanted to meet the train as it arrived from its inward journey.

We had about half an hour before the train was due, so I took the opportunity to have a look around, as our rushed connection on Monday afternoon had left no time to explore. I was pleasantly surprised that Mallaig station, despite only serving five trains a day, had a fully fledged station building with toilets and a staffed ticket office.

I was just relieved to have shelter from the rain, which was coming down rather heavily at this point. While Nuno hunted for somewhere to leave our luggage, I sat observing as the lone ticket clerk dealt patiently with a procession of foreign tourists who needed to get to London (impossible unless they stayed somewhere overnight or had sleeper tickets, as they couldn’t reach Glasgow before 9pm, well after the last London train would have left).

I wasn’t the only one making use of the station facilities, as some seagulls had decided to nest on the track! The rails they were using appeared to be disused, thankfully.

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We were up bright and early on Monday morning to head for Glasgow’s other main station, Queen Street. This is the starting point for services to the North, including the long and winding route to Mallaig. Armed with a bottle of Irn-Bru for refreshment (made in Scotland from girders… and E-numbers), we boarded a well-appointed ScotRail Super Sprinter and settled in to our table seat for the 5 hour, 2 minute journey ahead.

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