Why would anyone still walk onto a boat to travel 1.3 kilometres in Lochaber? Because by road the far shore of Loch Linnhe is a long detour south to the Corran narrows and back up again — and because the ferry costs £2 and has been kept running all year.
Timetable as published by Highland Ferries and read twice on 22 September 2026; the operator states the route operates all year but declares no validity period. Highland Ferries — Fort William to Camusnagaul · 2026-09-22
Why keep a boat for 1,278 metres of water? Because the alternative is genuinely awkward. Fort William sits on the eastern shore of Loch Linnhe with the A82 running through it; Camusnagaul sits on the western shore with the A861, and the two roads do not meet anywhere near here. To get from one to the other on wheels you go south to the Corran narrows and back up the far bank, or right round the head of Loch Eil. The ferry does it for £2.
It is a passenger service, run by Highland Ferries Ltd under contract to The Highland Council — one of the Scottish routes we cover whose operator is a council contractor rather than CalMac. The council's own ferry page lists Camusnagaul–Fort William alongside Mallaig–Inverie–Tarbet and Cromarty–Nigg as routes it contracts out, while it operates the Corran Ferry itself. Of the two crossings Highland Ferries runs, Cromarty–Nigg is seasonal; this one, in the operator's own words, operates all year.
If you have seen this route credited to a Fort William cruise company, that is out of date. The operator to deal with is Highland Ferries, and the number for anything unusual — a Sunday sailing, the request-only evening departure, a query about what can be carried — is 07468 417137.
Three lines, and that is the whole fare table. It tells you a good deal about the service: this is a passenger launch, and the operator publishes no vehicle fare at all. If you need to move something bigger than a bicycle, ask before you drive to the pier. For scale, the CalMac ship that leaves Oban for Castlebay prints a campervan band running up to twelve metres.
| Adult | £ 2 |
| Child | £ 1 |
| Cyclist | £ 3.50 |
Fares published by Highland Ferries and checked on 22 September 2026; no validity date is given on the operator's page Highland Ferries — fares for Fort William to Camusnagaul · 2026-09-22
Fort William Town Pier and the Camusnagaul landing sit 1,278 metres apart. The map makes the geography obvious: the loch is narrow here, the town is on one bank and the A861 on the other, and nothing joins them except this boat until you go south to the Corran narrows.
The mainland end is the Town Pier at the west side of Fort William, a short walk from the High Street. Fort William railway station and the bus station both sit around 300 to 350 metres away as the crow flies, which makes this one of the few Scottish ferries you can reach off a West Highland Line train without arranging anything else first.
Camusnagaul is on the western shore opposite the town, on the A861 road that runs up Loch Eil and down towards Ardgour. Be careful when you search for it: there is a second Camusnagaul in Highland, on Little Loch Broom near Dundonnell, more than 110 kilometres to the north. The position given here is the one the operator marks on its own map, and it agrees to within 60 metres with both the Department for Transport's record of the pier and the Ordnance Survey place point.
Highland Ferries Ltd operates the route under contract for The Highland Council, and the council's own ferry page names Camusnagaul–Fort William among its contracted services. Older directories still credit a cruise operator based in Fort William; that attribution is wrong.
The published week is Monday to Saturday. A Sunday sailing exists only by special arrangement and costs £100 for the boat, booked on 07468 417137.
The last departure from Fort William only runs if someone asks for it, and the request has to be in by 17:00. If you are relying on it to get home, make the call early in the afternoon.
The National Entitlement Card is accepted here, but for the Highland region only and for foot passengers only. Vehicle drivers cannot use it — a point the operator makes in bold on its own home page.
Fort William station and the bus station are both roughly 300 to 350 metres from the Town Pier, so this crossing can be strung on to a West Highland Line arrival without a car at either end.
Corran is a different crossing of the same loch several miles south: a vehicle ferry operated directly by The Highland Council, with its own slipways and its own disruptions. Camusnagaul carries people, not cars.
The published pattern is slim and shaped around the working day rather than the tourist one: out of Fort William at 08:00, back from Camusnagaul at 08:15; again at 10:30 and 10:45; a middle pair at 12:20 and 12:30; and an afternoon pair at 16:15 and 16:35. The fifth departure, 17:30 from the town, exists only if somebody asks for it by five o'clock.
That also means the return leg dictates the day. There is no advertised sailing back from Camusnagaul after 16:35, so a walk on the western shore has to be timed against that rather than against the last boat out of Fort William.
No, although both cross Loch Linnhe. Corran is a vehicle ferry that The Highland Council operates directly at the narrows several miles to the south. Camusnagaul is a passenger crossing between Fort William Town Pier and the opposite shore, run for the council by Highland Ferries Ltd.
Highland Ferries Ltd, which states on its own site that it operates contracts on behalf of The Highland Council, and the council confirms it from the other side by listing Camusnagaul–Fort William among its contracted ferry routes. Route directories that still name a Fort William cruise operator are wrong.
Not on the timetable. The operator runs Monday to Saturday. A Sunday crossing can be arranged, but it is a private hire: the published charge is £100 for the boat, booked on 07468 417137.
The last departure from Fort William is 17:30, and it is request only — you have to ask for it by 17:00. There is no matching evening return, so the last advertised crossing from the Camusnagaul side is the 16:35. Plan the way home before you plan the way out.
The operator publishes no vehicle fare. Its entire table is three lines — adult, child, cyclist — which is what you would expect of a passenger launch. Ring before you count on carrying anything larger than a bike.
Yes, on all Highland Ferries sailings, but for the Highland region only and only if you are travelling as a foot passenger. The operator is explicit that the NEC is not accepted for vehicle drivers.
£3.50 as a cyclist, against £2.00 as a foot passenger and £1.00 for a child. Those are the only three rates published, and the operator gives no validity date for them, so check the page before a trip you are budgeting closely.