Merry Christmas from all at the Scottish Wildlife Trust, Falls of Clyde!

While many of us drive home for Christmas (sorry, I’m sure you now have that song firmly stuck in your head) lots of folk will be getting the train. Some people might just be going away for a few days over the Christmas and New Year break. For those that are heading north by train from Glasgow or Edinburgh, I wanted to share an app from Scottish Natural Heritage which I think is a wonderful idea.

‘View from the Train’ can be downloaded as an app, you can get it as a podcast or listen to it on YouTube. For Android users, they have 2 apps, View from the Train and View from the Train – the West Highland Lines.

The app offers you a unique insight into the landscapes, nature and culture seen from some of Scotland’s main rail routes. Each route contains a series of four minute audio chapters covering stations on the journey.

From the Clyde shipyards, to wading birds on the estuary; or the grouse moors of the highlands to the gaelic poetry inspired by the landscape, the stories describe the links between man and Scotland’s rich natural environment.

The stories are narrated by well-known broadcasters Fiona MacDonald and Mark Stephen and include poetry and sound effects as well as sounds of the natural world.

The app includes stunning images showing Scotland’s diverse wildlife, landscapes and places of historical interest. It also has interviews and snippets from experts and enthusiasts. Listeners can hear from bird experts, a distiller, a countryside ranger and a broadcaster, among others, as they share their knowledge and passion about Scotland.

It makes me wish I were going on a train journey!

Laura Preston – Scottish Wildlife Trust, Falls of Clyde Ranger