Overview

Fort Augustus is a small village on the banks of Loch Ness, in the parish of Boleskine and Abertarff, roughly half way between Fort William and Inverness. Following the Jacobite rising in 1715, and because of its position along Loch Ness, situated between the two rivers of Tarff and Oich, a garrison was set up here and a small barracks and a fort was built in 1718, which was just a square with two towers on opposite sides of the corners. The settlement here was first known as Kiliwhimin, and remained so for nine years, until it was felt it was to far back from the water, so a new fort was built in 1927, to be known as Fort Augustus. Part of the old wall of Kiliwimin fort can be seen at the Lovat Arms hotel grounds, listed as Category B in 1971. The fort though was captured by the Jacobites in March 1746, just before the famous battle of Culloden in 1867, the fort was then bought by the Lovat family, and just 10 years later, the site and its land was given to the Benedictine order of Monks, who now established Fort Augustus Abbey, which continued under their care until 1993, when it closed as an Abbey, but the Monks arranged for it to become a private heritage centre which operated until 1998, Between 1929 and 1942, General Wade built this new fort, which they named after Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, and the settlement grew to then become known as Fort Augustus. During 1998, unable to make enough profit from the Abbey, the monks handed it back to the Lovat family. They then sold the old Abbey to Terry Nutkin, who also owned the Lovat Hotel, which stands where the old Kiliwhimin barracks had stood. Today, Fort Augustus has become a favourite tourist attraction, which enjoys cool summers and mild winters, but the records of its sunny days show it to be rather few and far apart, so expect rain much of the year. In the mid 2020’s the population was around 620, but can now be overcrowded when the visitors arrive, but it’s still a pleasant village to go and visit. ========================================================= Let’s take a look at Fort Augustus then. Photo 1. There is a car park on the edge of the village, but if you can, try to park on the driveway alongside the Caledonian canal, as you can see on our photo. On the opposite bank, stands the grounds of the Old Abbey, now beautifully converted into the Highlands Club Scotland apartments. Photo 2. Along here the canal has five locks, well maintained, and adds a lot of appeal to the photographers who spend much time here. Photo 3. However, our priority is a coffee break and toilets, and ahead of us stands the Caledonian canal centre, it’s slightly over to the right, so let’s head straight for this. Photo 4. There are no level footpaths so you will need to lift a wheelchair up yourself to get into the pavements. Because of Dennis,s health we chose to use a mouth covering, but that will be up to you to decide what to do. Photo 5. Once on the pavement, it is level entry into the canal centre. Photo 6. Inside, go straight ahead a short distance to reach the cafe, which is quite spacious, with plenty of room for your chair. Photo 7. The toilets are over to the left, through a little passage Photo 8. And it is large enough a cubicle to turn around in your chair or scooter, and it does have grab rails for you. Photo 9. It is very clean and well maintained, with a pull cord , but basic facilities, but rather welcomed after a long drive. Photo 10. The cafe is also very clean, plenty of seating areas, even outdoors if weather permits but it is cardboard cups they prefer to use, holding a decent enough cup of coffee, drinkable at least. Photo 11. There is a little sort of museum area with a few interesting items to see Photo 12. But the plan of the canal route from Inverness, passing Fort Augustus, and down to Fort William is worth taking a look at. Photo 13. Departing now from the centre, a stroll along its one Main Street is interesting enough, with nice views over towards the mountains, but the village itself does not have much to look at, other than the shop selling locally made ice cream, and very nice too, well, the ice cream we mean. Photo 14. We need to return now, as nothing else of interest, and head back towards the canal, and the swing bridge. Photo 15. When it’s open for crossing, there are just a few shops ahead, with usual tourist items on sale, then afterwards, turn up alongside the canal and its five locks, and head for a G and T. Photo 16. It is an attractive and pleasant stroll, and the sign board for the Lock Inn will soon get your attention. Photo 17. You can choose where to sit, either outside and watch the world go by, or popping inside Photo 18. It’s a small compact pub, just about enough room to settle down and order your G and T, we left our chair outside though. So all in all, Fort Augustus is a pleasant band interesting village, well worth visiting, and we learned such a lot about its history, and on our next review, we would love to tell you about the Caledonian canal.

Transport & Parking

If you can find a space, park up alongside the canal itself, just by the swing bridge. If not, there is a carpark on the outskirts of the village, signposted.

Access

You can get around on the pavements, once you are up on them, and easy enough to move along. It was level inside the canal centre, with lots of seating for a coffee break, and there are places to sit by the five locks.

Toilets

Welcomed. Small and basic, but the accessible room does hold almost all types of chair, and we found our wheelchair could turn around inside.

Staff

Very pleasant in all the shops we popped into.

Photos