The Caledonian Sleeper from London to Fort William stakes its claim for being one of the world’s great rail trips, promising to unglue passengers from scrolling on their phones with a parade of showstopping mountain landscapes. If the driver had reversed and repeated this 122-mile segment — the West Highland Line — I would have no complaints. It’s a stretch where civilisation melts away and Scotland emerges at its most vividly wild.
The journey begins at London Euston railway at platform one, one of the few long enough to accommodate the sleeper’s 16 carriages. It’s the same length as a Eurostar, making it the longest domestic service in the UK.
