We're going for a walk!
Can there be such a thing as a cult railway station? If so, Corrour can probably take a place at the head of the queue. At 408m above sea level, it is the highest mainline station in the UK, and with a ten mile hill walk to the nearest public road, arguably the most isolated too. A cameo role in Trainspotting gave the station a whole new audience. It is a huge pull for anyone with a passing interest in railways. Perhaps most importantly, and certainly more pertinently for this piece, it is a portal into the heart of one of Scotland and Britain's most unyielding and remote landscapes - Rannoch Moor.
Corrour summit - at 411m it is slightly higher than the station. The brooding hill behind is Beinn na Lap.
It took me three attempts to reach Corrour in 2021. The first two were day-trip plans scuppered by the cancellation of the evening train back to Glasgow. My third attempt was a success, thanks to the quite frankly miraculous late availability of a night in one of the three rooms in the signalbox at Corrour Station House - otherwise booked up entirely for the rest of the 2021 season. It wasn't a cheap trip but it was worth it.
Last train from Corrour. Footbridge as made famous by Ewan McGregor.
My First Munro summit, and other stories
Sir Hugh Munro published his first list of high Scottish hills, known as Munro's Tables, in 1891. The list is now maintained by the Scottish Mountaineering Club and currently contains 282 distinct peaks, which meet both the objective criteria of being 3,000ft (914.4m) or higher and the subjective criteria of "sufficient separation" from neighbouring peaks. A further 226 are classified as "Munro tops" as, in the esteemed opinion of the SMC, they lack sufficient separation. Despite being a Scot by birth, until August 2021 I had climbed precisely none of them.
There are three Munro hills that are easiest reached from Corrour. To the south of Loch Ossian are Sgòr Gaibhre (955m) and Càrn Dearg (941m), and to the north of the Loch are the slopes of Beinn na Lap (935m). To the west of the station, cone of Leum Uilleim (the "Trainspotting mountain") stands at 909m or 2,982ft, a haircut short of a Munro hill. Having achieved a big tick (in my mind at least) just by stepping onto the platform at Corrour, it was time to bag an even bigger check mark at the summit of Beinn na Lap - my first Munro.
Corrour Station House and Leum Uilleim
There's no point pretending that starting at 408m above sea level doesn't help. By Munro standards, this is beyond straightforward with just over 650m of total ascent - but it is still a proper hike and you aren't going to be overburdened by company. The ropey weather probably made a contribution to the isolation but I didn't meet a single soul on the hill. To my great surprise, once I'd reached a height of around 650m my phone signal returned (it was non-existent on the moorland floor, the only connection to the outside world is available via the Wi-Fi at the Station House).
The walk's navigation has a simple charm to it. Follow the estate track from the station towards the youth hostel on the shoreline of Loch Ossian, swing left and left again following the footpath signs for Fort William, and then immediately leave the track to follow the thin path upwards. It was a little wet underfoot, and I imagine it would be significantly more so out-of-season. I've read some guides suggest the climb is pathless but that isn’t true in 2021 - Munro-baggers have definitely forged a path that is thin but clear. There's only one point where you fear it might disappear, which is the steep final pull up to the ridge just above the 700m contour. You wouldn't describe it as a scramble, and the whole section is barely 10m long, but it is the only part of the whole walk you might plausibly describe as technical.
From here the gradient eases significantly on the climb towards the summit. Also slowly disappearing in my case was the view, as the clouds consolidated themselves over the high ground. Approaching in the mist, there's the false dawn of a large wind shelter which on a better day would provide a full panorama of Loch Ossian below and Sgòr Gaibhre and Càrn Dearg opposite. Not today. Eventually the huge summit cairn, immediately evident as higher than the wind shelter, looms into view a little further along.
Thus, my first Munro, Beinn na Lap enveloped in a grey crag. I left with a mild disappointment about the view, and a big sense of achievement nonetheless. I very much doubt I'll ever get to 282, not least because abseiling off the top of the Inaccessible Pinnacle isn't really my bag at all, but I'd like to get a few more in.
Beinn na Lap summit cairn. Great view.
As I look out over this magnificent vista…
I got lucky. No sooner had my stride taken me past the summit lochan (it still feels strange not writing "tarn" here), the cloud lifted. I can't remember the last time I felt so excited on a hill. I dashed back to the summit. The camera came out. I rushed to the north top beyond the summit cairn for a look beyond, and then south to look down onto Loch Ossian. What a feeling. I wanted to bottle it, for every time a blister pops on a long descent, for every time it pours down when the forecast says sunshine, for every rolled ankle and every cloud-cloaked trigpoint and every boggy morass stepped in. This is why we walk, and hike, and stroll, and climb. This is why we get on a train on a whim to the back end of nowhere, put on our boots, and head out. I loved it. I can't wait to go back.
Beinn na Lap summit cairn, looking north to Chno Dearg
View north-east from Beinn na Lap summit. The track reaches civilisation eventually.
Eastern edge of Loch Ossian from Beinn na Lap - clouds looming!"
The vast space of Rannoch Moor. Corrour station is visible on the right edge of the photograph.
Oh, got a bit carried away there. Descend by route of ascent. Take a good waterproof. And have fun.
Walk details: Beinn na Lap, from Corrour
Date of walk: Friday 6th August 2021
Total distance: 11.2km with a bit of faffing around at the summit
Total ascent: 684m with a bit of faffing around at the summit
Refreshments: Corrour Station House (open March to October)
Parking: nice one
There are no public roads to Corrour. The only way in is via the West Highland Line railway. There are three Scotrail trains each way per day in summer and I believe only two in winter, plus the Caledonian Sleeper. The Station House has a small shop and serves food and drinks most of the day in season. In addition to the three expensive but brilliant rooms at the Station House, there's a youth hostel on the Loch Ossian shoreline.
Loch Ossian, taken from near the youth hostel
The 10-mile walk to Rannoch takes you to the nearest road.