The Ghan

One of the Great Railway Journeys of the World, covering almost 3,000 km from Darwin to Adelaide.

We joined in Alice Springs for the journey to Adelaide, which takes just under 24 hours.

The temperature at the Station was 43C when we had our picture taken under the statue of the camel and driver on the platform.

After a glass of champagne in the lounge coach we trooped down the platform some 4 coaches back to coach D berths 11 & 12. The compartment was compact, with the tiniest pull down toilet and hand basin with shower in a cupboard. Sleeping was in bunk berths with almost no room to move at all.

Meals were served in a restaurant in the next coach to the lounge over 4 sittings, we got lunch at 2:15 and dinner at 8:45, 6 ½ hours between meals.

The scenery was shall we say consistent, scrub, scrub and more scrub. Once out of Alice it was 6 hours before we passed under a bridge carrying the Stuart Highway, which also runs from Darwin to Adelaide. About an hour later we came to stop in a passing loop and one of the train staff got out to operate the points to let a freight train pass us and then had to walk the length of the train to join the locomotives at the front.

The next morning after breakfast we had some more excitement, a kangaroo jumping along in a massive field alongside the train (we had passed into arable country) and a ‘willy willy’ which is a small circular sandstorm.

We arrived in Adelaide about ½ hour early, George had his picture taken in the compartment and I got a shot of the nameplate which is on every coach. I couldn’t get down to the locomotives which were some 18 coaches forward; The Ghan is an enormous train 30 coaches long, getting on for ½ mile.