Hogwart’s Express

Glenfinnan Viaduct – Harry Potter Bridge

October 4-6, 2019

Recognize this bridge?  Who wouldn’t want to ride on the train that travels over the viaduct that the Harry Potter series made famous?  It was so beautiful! In fact, the entire train ride from Mallaig to Glasgow is magnificent.  That is an adventure for your bucket list for sure.

I’m getting ahead of myself.  After crossing the ferry over the turbulent waters, I arrived in the port city of Mallaig.  I stayed in the Mission Bunkhouse which was just outside of the ferry dock and immediately across the street from the train station that I needed the next morning.  Being such a prime location could have lent itself to a very rundown or expensive lodging.  However, much to my surprise and delight, it was excellent! It was very clean, very quiet and the woman who managed the property was delightful.  It was a perfect location to ride out the residue of the hurricane that had become nothing more than a long night of storms.  

By morning, the rain had all cleared and I was able to explore the tiny fishing town before boarding the train.

The ride from Mallaig to Ft. Williams is famous and tickets should be bought in advance.  The country side is magical and something straight out of Harry Potter’s adventures (Hogwart’s Express).  People come from all over the world to watch the train go over the viaduct. 

They stand  at the bottom of the bridge and wait to photograph the train as it crosses the bridge.  The train only comes by twice a day.  It is the longest concrete bridge in Scotland and crosses the river Finnan.

I arrived in Glasgow and wished Airbnb had indicated that my 15 minute walk was going to be all uphill and my lodging was on the 3rd floor! I stayed in the home of a single woman named Maria who was a student from Italy.  She was kind and I would have liked to stay longer than on night but she was booked for the weekend.  

I was hoping to find a place to rest and watch our church’s General Conference on Saturday and Sunday.  I need strong consistent wifi and was hoping to find a place to unpack and do some laundry.  I found an amazing home just outside of Glasgow.

However, after finding my way to the main train station (different from the one I arrived at the day before), I found myself in completely unfamiliar territory and was quite overwhelmed.

I imagine it was something similar to what visitors to a US airport for the first time must feel.  There were SO MANY trains leaving from so many different platforms.  As I looked around, I initially couldn’t begin to determine where my train was leaving from or how to buy the right ticket.  I did eventually figure it out and when I arrived at my airbnb, the owner – Peter – was working in England over the weekend and I had the home to myself for three days.  

What a welcomed respite! The bed was the best of my trip so far and with its many down pillows and down comforter, I spend much of my three days beneath the duvet.  Peter was recently widowed and when he did return, was wonderful company.  We had many meaningful conversations and discussions about faith, eternal families and hope.  I ended up staying several more days as I was very fatigued.  

I do not enjoy the big cities as much as the quiet neighborhoods. I prefer to get to know the people and integrate into their way of life.  Peter’s home was the first one that had a “tumbler” or dryer for clothing.  However, they are not used like they are in the US.  They are only used infrequently and most things are dried on a drying rack like the one he had that could be lowered from the ceiling of his laundry room.  

Once I had stopped for a few days, my body took advantage of the down time and promptly got sick.  Upon hearing this, my friend Gill invited me to return to Edinburgh to rest and recover.  How grateful I was to have a friend come to my rescue! Changing locations and carrying the weight of my packs every day is taxing.  The stress of trying to locate a good wifi signal so I can work takes a tremendous amount of energy.  So I spent much of October back in Edinburgh resting up and enjoying the people and city I have come to love so much.