A830 road

A830 road
Road network
Roads in the United Kingdom Motorways A and B road zones

The A830, sometimes known as the Road to the Isles (although in reality it forms only a part of that historic route), is a road in Lochaber, in the Highlands of Scotland, which connects the town of Fort William to the port of Mallaig.

The road passes through several small settlements, including Corpach, Glenfinnan and Arisaig and bypasses the village of Morar. Until spring 2009 its section between Arisaig and Lochailort was the only remaining single-track trunk road still in use in the UK (apart from a small section of A887 West of Invermoriston) but now all the road is double track.

On 25 May 2008 the road was featured in the BBC TV programme Countryfile.

Thomas Telford engineered what was then called the Loch na Gaul road from Fort William to Arisaig. It was completed in 1812.

The Road to the Isles

'The Road to the Isles' is actually an ancient road which leaves General Wade's military road from Stirling to Inverness at Tummel Bridge, along the northern banks of the River Tummel and Loch Rannoch roughly along the present day B846. Where today's road runs out the old road continued over Rannoch Moor towards Kings House on the A82, over the Devil's Staircase and past Kinlochleven, to meet the present A830 at Fort William.

Song

There is a traditional Scottish song about the road, called The Road to the Isles. The lyrics mention locations the road passes, including (in order): the Cuillin Hills, Tummel, Loch Rannoch, Lochaber, Shiel, Ailort, Morar, the Skerries and the Lews.