The previous vacation posts…
Day 1 (London): https://georgegmoore.com/2025/10/18/vacation-day-one-london/
Day 2 (London-Rock ‘n Roll Tour): https://georgegmoore.com/2025/10/26/vacation-day-two-london-rock-n-roll-tour/
Day 3 (London-Harry Potter, Part 1): https://georgegmoore.com/2025/11/02/vacation-day-3-the-harry-potter-experience-part-1/
Day 3 (London-Harry Potter, Part 2): https://georgegmoore.com/2025/11/09/vacation-day-3-the-harry-potter-experience-part-2/
Day 4 (London-ABBA Voyage): https://georgegmoore.com/2025/11/17/vacation-day-4-london-and-abba-voyage/
Day 5 (London-Sunday Roast): https://georgegmoore.com/2025/11/30/vacation-day-5-sunday-roast/
Day 6 (London-Travel Day): https://georgegmoore.com/2025/12/13/vacation-day-6-travel-day/
Today was the day to ride the Hogwarts Express in Scotland. In reality, it’s the Jacobite Steam Train which travels between Fort William and Mallaig.
Kel and I were up early and headed to Edinburgh via bus. We stopped by Starbucks for breakfast and headed to the tour office at 7. The tour itself was all day. We rode north through the Scottish Highlands to our eventual destination of Mallaig.
Throughout the ride we learned Scotland history. Also, we made several stops along the way, mostly for bathroom breaks, which our guide, Tim, called Pee-and-Flees.
We stopped at Glenfinnan Viaduct, which we’ll eventually ride over on the train. This was a great photo opportunity of the shooting locations involving the Black Lake and the Hogwarts Express train ride.
We had lunch in Mallaig and boarded the Jacobite Steam Train.
The trip proceeds through the country. Every time we came out of the tunnel it was like emerging from the fog. Eventually, we traveled over the viaduct. The pictures were rushed—they weren’t into stopping or reversing to get better pics.
As an unexpected bonus, we passed the island where Dumbledore was buried. Here’s a cool fact—in Google Maps, you can search for “Dumbledore’s Grave Scotland” and the island will appear.
On the way back to Edinburgh, we stopped at the Three Sisters mountains in Glencoe.
We finally arrived in Edinburgh and our hotel after 9 p.m. Some quick packing and off to bed. We had to get up at 3 a.m. for our flight to Cork, Ireland.
I’m an author living in northern Virginia with a wife and a cat. In the late ’80s, I worked on the International Space Station project. I recently retired from managing a group of software engineers to focus on writing science fiction and speculative fiction. Learn more.