Day 4: Back to Oban

After a short break to take care of business matters in the capital, the Skipper boarded a train with 'greenhorn' Seaman Wagstaff and his flatmate, Simon. Our destination was Oban, capital of the Western Highlands, where the Skipper had left the Good Ship bobbing contentedly on a mooring the previous week. The route we took was the West Highland Line, one of the great train journeys of the world (indeed it was voted by Wanderlust Magazine as THE best rail journey in the world, above the Orient Express and the Trans-Siberian Railway). It's easy to see why: the line goes from the industrial heartland of Glasgow, through the seaside town of Helensburgh and the upper reaches for the Firth of Clyde (which were bathed in sunshine as we passed), and from there up the side of Gareloch and over the hill to the east side of fjord-like Loch Long. From the head of the loch, it heads over to meet Loch Lomond at Tarbet, before heading up the west coast of that Loch past Ardlui at the head and on to Crianlarich and Tyndrum. It then passes through dramatic Glen Lochy, past the head of stunning Loch Awe, and on through the Pass of Brander to meet Loch Etive at Taynuilt. The final stretch of the journey took us past the Falls of Lora (under the Connel Bridge, and the world's only salt-water waterfall) and on to our destination of Oban. It was a truly epic, breathtaking journey (and surprisingly cheap at around £20) and it comes highly recommended to anyone. The evening was wrapped up with dinner with Lizzy and Paul at the Cuan Mor restaurant, and a scramble in the dinghy in the pitch black as we embarked on the Good Ship ready for setting off the following day.