The Washington Times
  • Subscribe
  • Times News Services
  • RSS
  • Mobile Headlines
  • e-edition
  • E-MAIL ALERTS
  • REGISTER
  • LOG IN
  • E-MAIL ALERTS
  • WELCOME
  • Your Profile
  • Log Out
  • Front Page Image
  • Classifieds
  • Autos
  • Real Estate
  • Jobs
  • Special Sections
  • Customer Service
  • Home
  • News
  • Opinion
  • Sports
    • NFL
    • NBA/WNBA
    • MLB
    • NHL
    • Tennis
    • Golf
    • Motorsports
    • Soccer
    • NCAA
    • Olympics
    • Outdoors
    • Other
  • Culture
    • Home & Living
    • Family & Kids
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Travel
    • Health
    • Washington Visitors
    • Books
    • Military History
    • Life
    • Auto
    • TV Listings
    • Movie Listings
    • Death Notices
    • Entertainment
  • Themes
  • Communities
  • Shopping
    • Stores
    • Coupons
    • Daily Double
    • Promotion
    • How It Works
  • Videos
    • Two Guys
    • Birnbaum on Washington
    • Liz Glover
    • Amanda Carpenter
    • Morning Briefing
    • Documentaries
    • Joe Giganti
    • Video Game Minute
  • Podcasts
    • About Headlines
    • Audio and Radio
    • America's Morning News
  • Politics

    CURL: West Point is site of historic Vietnam speech

  • Politics

    Climate 'czar' says hacked e-mails don't change anything

  • Food

    Obama pardons 'Courage,' the Thanksgiving turkey

  • Politics

    Obama to outline war plan at West Point

  • Politics

    Obama to attend Denmark climate summit

  • Business

    Initial jobless claims lowest in about year

  • National

    PULLEN: GOP came unmoored in last decade – it hurt

Friday, March 11, 2005

The enchanting Highlands

Rate this story

Average 0.00
after 0 votes
Login or register to rate this story

  • Font Size -+
  • Print
  • Email
  • Comment
  • Tweet this!
  • Share
  • Article
  • Comments ()
  • Click-2-Listen
  • Videos

More Stories

  • Obama to outline war plan at West Point
  • Obama expects support for more troops
  • D.C. sports icon, Wizards owner Pollin dies
  • Leonsis in line to buy Wizards, Verizon

By

BOAT OF GARTEN, Scotland - There's no boat at Boat of Garten, a village on the west bank of the Spey River in the Highlands of Scotland, but there's a Royal Scotsman.

The Royal Scotsman is a splendid, luxurious "cruise on wheels," as one of my fellow passengers, a vivacious gemologist from South Carolina, describes it. But no endless ocean vistas here. The original 17th-century settlement, Gart, changed its name to Boat of Garten in honor of the ferry crossing the Spey when a road and a rail system arrived with the Industrial Revolution.

Passenger travel ceased in 1965, freight in 1968. Today, the station, an iconic relic of the days when trains ruled the countryside, is an overnight parking place for the Royal Scotsman on tracks maintained by a private group of railroad enthusiasts called the Strathspey Railway.

The Royal Scotsman speeds through the wild Scottish countryside on iron, not brine, through deep-green forests of pine, moors that turn purple in August and September when the heather is in bloom, golden fern-covered hills, bright green meadows dotted with black-faced sheep and shaggy Highland cattle, remote castles steeped in mystery and romance, whitewashed villages and calm wide lochs that reflect the changing colors of the sky.

It rains a lot in Scotland; as the saying goes, "If you can't see the sky, it's raining, and if you can see the sky, it's going to rain." When the sun shines, though, magic takes firm hold.

Two-, three-, four- and five-day journeys on the Scotsman begin in Waverly Station in Edinburgh. The train heads north along Scotland's east coast, and soon we are crossing the magnificent 1880s cantilevered railroad bridge over the Firth of Forth.

It was on the middle of this bridge that Robert Donat stopped the train and climbed out onto the girders to escape his pursuers in Alfred Hitchcock's great early thriller "The 39 Steps." It's easy to see why Mr. Hitchcock chose this bridge for the scene; it's one of the greatest engineering achievements of the Victorian age.

The Royal Scotsman takes on 36 passengers in 16 twin and 4 single cabins, all with private bathrooms and good beds, furnished in cozy country style. Two dining cars -- the Raven and Victory, named to commemorate the end of World War II -- and an observation car with a small platform at the rear of the train bracket our coaches.

The observation car is awash in sofas, chairs and little tables just right for holding the champagne and whiskey that flow throughout our journey. From the narrow galley between the two dining cars, chef Dan Hall and his assistant, Craig Grozier, produce a delicious array of dishes morning, noon and night: fish from the sea and the rivers of Scotland; lamb, beef and game from Scottish meadows; salmon smoked and baked; wicked desserts; and wines from around the world. Even the breads and breakfast croissants are baked on board.

The passengers are a mixed group, about half American and the rest from Switzerland, Italy, Israel, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. As mixed as the nationalities are the occupations of the travelers, including a charming nurse from New York traveling with her mother, an engineer who worked with the Danish underground during World War II, a screenwriter traveling with her son on the way to see if she can persuade Sean Connery to star in her movie, an international financier, a psychologist and a honeymooning couple.

12345Next »

Post a comment

There are comments on this article, submit your opinion!

Commenting is disabled for this entry.
If you feel there is still something worth mentioning about this entry please contact the author or the site admin.

Ask a Question

You Report

Do you have another point of view, photos, audio, video or more information about a story?

Top Stories

Most Read

  1. EDITORIAL: Hiding evidence of global cooling
  2. Top Republican lawmakers not attending State Dinner
  3. Fenty trails Gray in D.C. poll
  4. Conservatives seek test for RNC funds
  5. Food snobs fork over $225 for taste of heritage turkey
More Top Stories »
  1. Religious leaders vow civil disobedience on anti-life issues
  2. PRUDEN: Obama's due process doctrine
  3. Company that repaired Chairman Gray's house lacked license
  4. KELLNER: New Apple mouse really is 'Magic'
  5. List of W.H. state dinner guests

Most Shared

  1. EDITORIAL: Hiding evidence of global cooling
  2. EDITORIAL: Obama's sacked inspector general
  3. The United Socialist States of America
  4. EDITORIAL: Kennedy vs. Catholicism
  5. EDITORIAL: Terrorists use Democratic talking points
More Top Stories »
  1. 'Boutique' patients pay for better access to doctors
  2. Fenty trails Gray in D.C. poll
  3. Food snobs fork over $225 for taste of heritage turkey
  4. Climate 'czar' says hacked e-mails don't change anything
  5. PULLEN: GOP came unmoored in last decade – it hurt

Most Commented

  1. EDITORIAL: Hiding evidence of global cooling
  2. Top Republican lawmakers not attending State Dinner
  3. Conservatives seek test for RNC funds
  4. PRUDEN: Obama's due process doctrine
  5. Climate 'czar' says hacked e-mails don't change anything
More Top Stories »
  1. EDITORIAL: Terrorists use Democratic talking points
  2. A-listers, fundraisers at W.H. state dinner
  3. Ky. hanging, ruled a suicide, leaves bloggers at loss for words
  4. EDITORIAL: Obama's sacked inspector general
  5. WH: Obama Afghan decision 'within days'

Listen to Washington Times Radio

  • America's Morning News

    with John McCaslin and Melanie Morgan

Blogs & Columns

  • Hot Button Blog

    RNC: Breast cancer recommendations may lead to 'rationing'

  • Belief Blog

    Evangelicals OK civil disobedience

  • Out of Context

    Foods that might kill libido

  • On the Fly

    United lifts some 'award' blocking

  • Technology

    Facebook wins round against phishing spammer

  • Redskins 360

    Gray coy about job

  • SNOBlog

    Beyond 'Woody'

Videos

Advertising Links
TWT Store
  • e-edition
  • Print Edition
  • Weekly Washington Times
TWT Affiliates
  • Middle East Times
  • Golf
  • UPI
  • Arbor Ballroom
  • Washington Times Global
  • About TWT
  • Press Room
  • F.A.Q.
  • Work for TWT
  • Advertise
  • Sponsors
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Site Map

All site contents © Copyright 2009 The Washington Times, LLC.