SAW029876 SCOTLAND (1950). Loch Etive, general view, showing Connel Bridge and Ben Cruachan. An oblique aerial photograph taken facing east.

Train which has just left Oban heading east towards Callander. The Callander and Oban Railway. The Callander and Oban Railway company was built with the intention of linking the sea port of Oban to the railway network. This involved a long line from Callander through wild and thinly populated terrain, and shortage of money meant that the line was opened in stages from 1866 to 1880. The line improved the economy of Oban, especially for the fishing trade and for tourism, but the winter traffic was limited. The company built a branch to Ballachulish, which included the construction of a remarkable bridge at Connel over Loch Etive. The branch opened in 1903, but although it opened up remote areas it was never commercially successful. It closed in 1966. The main line was crossed by the West Highland Line at Crianlarich, where a connecting spur was constructed by the West Highland Line in 1897. The C&OR section between Callander and Crianlarich was closed in September 1965. However, the section between Crianlarich and Oban is still in use today, with trains using the connecting spur at Crianlarich.

WWII railway sidings, the Admiralty paid £15,700 for them in 1940.

RAF Connel.