Scotland help: Ft William area

[gardengal]

I think someone here lives in Scotland? And I think a few of you have gone multiple times so I’m hoping someone can help me!

My H & children are avid mountain bikers. I am…not. I also will not drive in Scotland. They are going to be taking a day when we are in the Ft William area to go mountain biking & I will need to find an activity for myself for 6 or so hours. My h can drop me off & pick me up when they are done

Thoughts:
1. I could do Jacobite train. But it’s pricy & some of the reviews say they don’t switch sides so you may not get a good view of the viaduct. Plus, Mallaig sounds kinda overwhelmed when the train arrives. But I do like HP…

2. I could go over the viaduct on ScotRail. It’s cheaper & has bigger windows. Plus, I could stop at other towns if one before Mallaig is more interesting. 

3. Maybe stay in Ft William itself? It looks like there’s a small museum & some shops/restaurants 

I do not want to go on a hike by myself (plus, we have other hiking days in this area)

[pittpurple]

I live in Scotland but I've actually never been to Fort William (I live in Edinburgh)
What time of year?

Personally I'd think it would be wonderful to just have a lazy day if my kids and husband were busy - I'd have a slow breakfast, wander around the town, have afternoon tea, read a book... etc.
Worth noting there have been endless train strikes lately so trains are... changeable. Where else are you going and is there anything you really want to do that isn't on the list? There will be day tours and such you can get from Ft William too.

[gardengal]

pittpurple, we are going in summer (I know, midges. But we are also limited by school calendar & will be in Scotland for over 2 wks).

We are also going to Edinburgh, Isle of Skye & LochLomand\Troassachs (sp?). From Ft William we will also probably do a day trip to Oban bc we wanted go there but ran out of time.

I’d be interested in a tour but the only ones I’ve seen that start in Ft William is a boat excursion on a loch to see seals (meh), daytrip to Skye, or private excursions of my choice for $600+.

You’re right about the strikes. Maybe I’ll stick to the ScotRail plan bc that’s less to lose. We aren’t staying *in* Ft William itself-about 15-20min away?— but I’m sure I could call a car or something after a leisurely morning to get to Ft William itself?

[pittpurple]

gardengal,
Scot Rail is actually more likely to be affected by strikes - the private companies 'probably' won't be affected.
There's no perfect time to be in Scotland for the weather - you can get lucky or unlucky all year. They're only super bad at dusk / dawn. Wouldn't plan on being outside then when you're up north.
Have you come across this site? I'd be super keen on one of the water tours - it's so pretty on the lakes out there
highlandminitours.co.uk/

I wouldn't be 'too' sure you can call a car - check with wherever you are staying as you might need to pre book, etc. Public transport outside the cities isn't great!

[gardengal]

pittpurple, no, I read reviews that if there’s a strike, the Jacobite train also doesn’t run. There were several very pissed off people. I’d rather be out $20 than $60 kwim? Both trains use the same rails so I imagine that a strike affects behind the scenes people too so the rails themselves close?🤷🏻‍♀️

I did look & there appears to be Ft William taxi companies I can book (booking ahead is fine as I’ll know if there’s a rail strike). I’ve also not seen that tour company in my many google searches so I’ll look and see if there’s something even better! Thank you!

[woowoo]

I'm not sure if logistically there is any way to do this, but our highlight from our time in that area was visiting Castle Stalker. They only do one tour a day, so you'd have to make a reservation.