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 Fort William from the West |
 The Town Pier |
 Inverlochy Castle |
Fort William enjoys an enviable position on Loch Linnhe with the majestic Ben Nevis as its backdrop in distant views.
The town takes its name from the fort that William, Prince of Orange, had built here in 1690. Though it was successfully held by government troops during the Jacobite uprisings of 1715 and 1745, the surrounding area saw great turmoil (see our Historical Timeline).
Today, such a bloody past is difficult to imagine. Fort William is the main centre for the Western Highlands and a magnet for tourists. There are gift shops to suit all tastes and walkers can stock up on essentials - and non-essentials - in a number of specialist outlets.
Transport links to and from Fort William are very good. It is accessible by bus or by train from all points south. The scenic West Highland Railway runs from here to Mallaig. And for more local transport, bikes can be hired in the town.
Just north of Fort William lies the original medieval Inverlochy Castle. A little further north still, just off the Mallaig road near Corpach, you can explore Neptune's Staircase, the flight of eight locks near the southern end of the Caledonian Canal.
In some ways, Fort William's major attraction is Ben Nevis, at 1344m Britain's highest mountain. This is reached from Glen Nevis, also the starting point for a great number of other walks, ranging from the strenuous to the much less so. The gorge at the east end of the Glen gives access to the 100ft high waterfall at Steall Meadows. For the more energetic, there are miles of walking and ten Munros (individual mountains over 3000ft or 914m) to be had in the beautiful Mamores. North of Glen Nevis lie ten more Munros including Ben Nevis itself and a number of more remote and thankfully much less visited peaks such as Aonach Mor and Aonach Beag.
Glen Nevis also provides the final pull for the steady stream of footsore individuals completing the West Highland Way from Milngavie on the outskirts of Glasgow. Nearby is the start of Scotland's newest long distance footpath is the 73 mile long Great Glen Way from Fort William to Inverness. This can easily be combined with the West Highland Way to produce a fortnight's walking from Glasgow to Inverness.
Four miles outside Fort William is Nevis Range, a year-roun mountain resort with a mountain gondola. The gondola runs all year and allows visitors to journey half way up Aonach Mor, a 4006ft mountain. The views from it are spectacular and appear in an ever changing panorama on the 15 minute ride.
Four miles further is the village of Spean Bridge. The Commando Memorial - in memory of the Commandos who trained in the area during WWII - just north of the village is a poignant spot and also an excellent viewing point for Ben Nevis, the Aonachs and the Grey Corries. Beyond the Commando Memorial is the minor road to one of their main training areas: the wild and very lonely Loch Arkaig.
Taking the right turn at the junction in the centre of Spean Bridge puts you on the A86 past Roybridge en route to Kingussie and Aviemore. North of Roybridge is the spectacular Glen Roy, complete with the still visible parallel lines left by the shorelines of glacial lochs.
