Touring On and Around The Far North Line
The committee has often considered compiling a guide to the sights of the Far North Line. After various exchanges of comments regarding Michael Portillo's journeys around Britain with his Bradshaw we came up with the following list. To explore them all you will need to abandon the train but then you'll be seeing the Line in all its glory from many different aspects and who knows you might take some interesting photos to send to the new Editor.
Clachnaharry - swing bridge
Muirton Basin
Beauly - smallest/busiest station - history - 'Beautiful place', commuters
Dingwall - 'ting' - Viking parliament. 'Canal' - fishing boats to the west
Strathpeffer - old station
Fyrish monument - Indian Mutiny, walking, jogging, mountain biking
Storehouse, Foulis - locally sourced food to traditional recipes with a twist. Huge success
Alness in bloom!! (history of oil boom-bust-bloom)
Alness Transition Town - sustainable energy, food, business and TRANSPORT
Alness - 'spoots' (harvesting razor clams and exporting to Spain and Japan)
Dalmore Distillery (Fidel Castro - best single malt with a cigar)
Invergordon - mine factory in 1st WW - mine casings shipped from America to Kyle of Lochalsh, trained to Dalmore using a forgotten link from the FNL at Beleport current owners of Whyte & McKay are Indian - developing markets in India and China.
Invergordon - mutiny, murals at station, rig servicing, cruise liners
Tain - Fine Cheese
Tain - Glenmorangie distillery
Nigg Station - try and discover the reason for an AHB level crossing in this remote part of Ross-shire
Nigg - (Fearn Station) - history and future in renewables?
Carbisdale Castle YH (Sutherland family feud) - when it re-opens!
Walk across the bridge
Alladale - wild animals (controversial)
Falls of Shin - Harrods of the north
Lairg - sheep sales, railway history
Lairg - hydro scheme
Lairg - oil deliveries
Rogart - 1st Canadian prime minister memorial
Frank Roach transport collection at Rogart Station (see advertisement
)
Dornoch - old railway line and Victorian tourism
Golspie - stone cutters
Big Burn walk
Water mill flour production
Golspie - Ben Bhraggie
Dunrobin - Castle
Dunrobin - broch
Helmsdale - herring, clearances, gold. museum
Strath Ullie - broch hut circles
Kildonan - watch the amazing sight of a train driver having to stop and check for motorists on a very minor road - complete bonkers! Finally (2021) the crossing has been equipped with proper barriers so trains can pass through at line speed if no-one has requested to get on or off.
Altnabreac - Loch Dhu lodge and connection with Lisa St Aubin de Teran - railway maniac ("Off the Rails")
Forsinard - RSPB
Georgemas - with luck you might see all three uses of the Line, freight, rail tours and normal timetable operation, look out for the pipe train
Thurso - 'Atomics' - but be careful of what you pick up on Sandside beach!
Scrabster - launch pad for the New Worlds of Orkney, Fair Isle, Shetland, Faroes, Iceland, Russia (convoys), Smyrrl ferries. i.e. not the end of the road, but the start of a new journey, renewable energy - wind, wave, tidal - most important site in the world
Wick - LeJog (Lands End to John o' Groats on foot, bicycle, tricycle, supermarket trolley etc etc)