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Description

This is a preserved station on the Strathspey Railway. The architect of the station building, (dating from around 1904), was William Roberts. A 1860s stone portion, house styled like at Dava, is extended by the newer timber portion. It was a junction station, the line from Perth dividing here to go north to Forres or north east via Strathspey to Keith. The station is 712 ft above sea level.

The station had two platforms on the Forres route and the southbound platform's second face, it was an island, was for the Keith route. The main station building was on the northbound platform. Platforms are linked by a lattice footbridge, originally located north of the station building and since relocated to the south. Some Keith route trains continued on to terminate at Kingussie.

There was a carriage shed for the Great North of Scotland Railway at the north end of the island platform. It was approached from the north.

To the north the two single track lines ran north to Broomhill Junction (not actually a junction, but a division point) - the line north to Forres was the Inverness and Perth Junction Railway of 1863 and the line to Keith was the original Strathspey Railway, reaching here in 1866.

There was a goods yard on the east side, approached from the south. This yard also facilitated exchange between the two companies.

To the north, on the Keith route, was the Boat of Garten Shed.

The station has two signal boxes. Both north and south boxes are 'B' listed. The north box is on the west side and the south box on the east side. The boxes opened around 1885 (the south box was replaced in 1922) and survived until the station closed to passengers. The Great North of Scotland Railway paid for the north box in exchange for station access.

After 1948 British Railways stopped marshalling trains at Boat of Garten and used the yard at Aviemore Yard for marshalling Dava and Keith route trains.

The was station closed to passengers in 1965 by British Railways when the line north to Forres [2nd] closed completely. The Strathspey Railway remained open through to Craigellachie until June 1969 for goods traffic.

The broad bridge over the road to the north of the station was removed in 1974, severing the closed Speyside trackbed route north.

The station was re-opened by the Strathspey Railway in 1978.

A new single track bridge over the road, in sympathetic style, was installed in 1996. The line north to Broomhill was completed and opened in 2002.

Local

Boat of Garten was a ferry crossing the River Spey. A chain operated ferry was employed due to the flow of the river. A road bridge opened in 1899.

RSBP - Loch Garten

Boat of Garten Village

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