Kyle of Lochalsh

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Kyle of Lochalsh
Scottish Gaelic: Caol Loch Aillse
Kyle of Lochalsh shown within Scotland
Population	739^[1]
Language	English
	Scottish Gaelic
OS grid reference	NG765275
Council area	Highland
Lieutenancy area	Ross and Cromarty
Constituent country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	KYLE OF LOCHALSH
Postcode district	IV40
Dialling code	01599
Police	Northern
Fire	Highlands and Islands
Ambulance	Scottish
European Parliament	Scotland
UK Parliament	Ross, Skye and Lochaber
Scottish Parliament	Ross, Skye and Inverness West
Website: http://www.visitkyle.co.uk
List of places: UK • Scotland

Coordinates: 57°17′N 5°43′W / 57.28, -5.72

Kyle of Lochalsh (from the Scottish Gaelic Caol Loch Aillse, "strait of the foaming lake") is a village on the northwest coast of Scotland, 63 miles (100 km) west of Inverness. It is located at the entrance to Loch Alsh, opposite the village of Kyleakin on the Isle of Skye. A ferry which used to connect the two villages was replaced by the Skye Bridge, about a mile (2 km) to the west, in 1995.

Kyle of Lochalsh

The village is the transport and shopping centre for the area as well as having a harbour, marina with pontoons for maritime visitors. The surrounding scenery and wildlife are regarded as attractions of the village, as is the slow pace of life. Crofting as well as more recent crofting pursuits like salmon farming are some of the activities taking place in Kyle of Lochalsh.

Kyle of Lochalsh railway station is connected to Inverness by the Kyle of Lochalsh railway line, built in 1897 to improve public transport to the north-west of Scotland. The line ends on the water's edge, near where the ferry connection used to run.

[edit] In popular culture

In 1980, the BBC did a series of documentaries, entitled "Great Railway Journeys Of The World". The Kyle of Lochalsh appeared in an episode entitled "Confessions of a Trainspotter", presented by Michael Palin. In the segment, Palin traveled by various trains from London to the Kyle of Lochalsh. His humour was evident throughout the documentary. Upon reaching the Kyle of Lochalsh, he purchased a large piece of railway memorabilia—the Kyle of Lochalsh railway platform sign. The ending credits showed Palin taking the oversized sign with him back to London, which he then hung on his garden wall at home.
Along with nearby town Plockton, the town became the backdrop to the BBC drama series "Hamish MacBeth".