Crossing Australia south to north by train: the Ghan
It is a common misconception that Uluru (Ayers' Rock) is close to Alice Springs. Which is why I thought we could go to this small town in the geographical centre of the Australian continent, pop over to Uluru in the afternoon and leave the next day. We didn't want to fly, we wanted to see the Outback up close and personal. But we didn't really want to drive 1,500kms either. The answer: go by train!
The Ghan passenger train runs once a week in the southern summer, covering the 2,979 kms from Adelaide to Darwin (and vice versa), via Alice Springs, in three days and two nights. By the time I'd finished reading what was on offer I was hooked. But then I discovered that Uluru is a six-hour, 468 km drive away from Alice Springs. Unwilling to add another week to our trip and spend that much time in Alice Springs we decided to by-pass Uluru. The train journey itself became the objective.
“Why”, I wondered, “doesn't The Ghan depart from Adelaide's main station?” The answer became apparent as soon as we arrived at the purpose-built train station south-east of Adelaide's central business district. The train is far too long. This particular one was 996m long, made up of four restaurants, four “explorer lounges”, 19 passenger carriages, one wagon each for cars and luggage, two for staff and the two locomotives that haul it all along at an average speed of 85km/h.
The 320 guests did not, however, have to start their journey with a long walk. The silver train is split in two, half on platform 1, half on platform 2, joined together upon departure. If you have booked one of the 25 Platinum fares, you don't have to walk at all: an electric buggy deposits you at your carriage! Not us. We were in Gold, the only other fare available since July 2016 when the Red sit-up-seat-only economy class was phased out because of a sustained lack of demand.
We'd arrived early but I hardly had time to register surprise at the empty platform when a young woman, smartly outfitted in grey trousers, a striped shirt and broad-brimmed leather hat, took our heavy suitcases and invited us to follow her inside to check them in, keeping only our carry-on bags.
And then I understood why there was nobody on the platform. The passengers were all indoors, enjoying the air-conditioning and the free glasses of Croser (Adelaide's answer to champagne), or juice being offered by a young man also dressed in what I came to know as the “stripey outfit”. A singer/guitarist provided gentle, steady background music whilst passengers started socialising or browsed in the small shop.
Meanwhile, our luggage disappeared at the airport-style check-in counter and we were told which cabin we'd been assigned. We boarded some time before the train left at 12:15. Ours was one of the five cabins per carriage, aligned down one side of a corridor. Each is snug but comfortable with a couch, fold-down table, couple of recessed shelves, two mirrors and a large sealed window. Each has its own toilet, handbasin and surprisingly powerful shower. Good quality complimentary toilteries are provided. The small wardrobe and two drawers were enough to tidy away our clothing and the large space above them held our suitcases, day-packs, cameras and other sundries. When we returned from dinner the cabin had been transformed into a two-bunk bedroom with crisp white linen, light duvets and two pillows each. Towels are also supplied.
The train had a brand-new carriage for singles, the 16 cubicles dispensed either side of a serpentine passageway. Here, toilet and shower facilities are shared. The train also has two cabins adapted for handicapped guests and two “superior” rooms which boast a double bed, a slighly bigger bathroom, a more spacious wardrobe, a small table and two easy chairs, coffee and tea-making facilities and a mini-bar. I wasn't jealous because there are coffee and tea-making facilities in each carriage, and drinks, alcoholic or not, are included in the fare and available all day in the observation lounges.
The three days and two nights are spent in an internet free bubble. The ultimate relaxation! We'd brought books but barely looked at them, too busy looking outside! We were new to Australia and found the views endlessly interesting. For the first few hours the train trundles through small towns and farmland, past huge wind farms, through Port Augusta and alongside vast salt pans.
Penny McNamara, our cheerful train manager in charge of a crew of 52 on this journey, would occasionally advise us of where to look and tell us something of what we were seeing. Thanks to her, when the train made the biggest curve of the journey (where the track branches off north from the westbound India-Pacific line) we were well positioned to see the long line of carriages behind us. Hard to believe it was the same train as the one we were on!
Heading north into increasingly flat and treeless countryside we watched the sun set spectacularly. We were then faced with difficult choices in one of the Queen Adelaide Restaurants. We'd booked the latest of the three sittings and shared our table with another couple in the 12-table carriage. Was it to be the Spencer Gulf prawn & pork dumpling, smoked duck salad or vegetable tart for entrée? And what to choose between roast chicken, South Rock lamb or spinach gnocchi for main course? And hesitate between the chocolate and peanut butter delice, the ice cream selection or the cheese. The gourmet food is complemented by a good selection of Australian wines.
Meanwhile we'd made our choice amongst the excursions included in the fare. Like most of the passengers, we opted to be woken at 5:30 to see the sunrise in the desert at a place called Marla. I thought we'd tumble out of the train, watch the sun rise and then board again. So, I was pleasantly surprised when we stepped out of the train into an alley of camping lanterns leading the way to a couple of big bonfires, wooden tables and tressles and the “stripey's” out in force serving tea, coffee and freshly cooked fried eggs with barbecue sauce in a roll. And so we stood, warm and well fed watching the dark sky slowly being rolled up by a widening strip of salmon pink, orange, yellow and green until the sun broke over the dark line of scrub and the day began.
At 8:00 the train pulled out of Marla and some three hours later, a few kilometres after passing into the Northern Territory and whilst we were enjoying brunch, Penny told us to look out for the Iron Man, a metre-high monument built by railway workers to mark the one millionth concrete sleeper laid on the stretch of line between Tarcoola and Alice Springs. It's not much to look at really but it gives one plenty to think about, when one remembers that this stretch of track, completed in 1980, replaced the original wooden sleeper Ghan line, ravaged by white ants and flooding, which lies slightly east of the current track. The 1,559km line from Adelaide to Alice Springs took 52 years to build (1877-1929) but the 1,420km stretch between Alice Springs and Darwin was only begun in 2001 and completed in 2004.
We arrived in Alice Springs at 13:45 having spent most of the morning looking for wildlife amongst the Mulga acacias which look like an umbrella blown inside out that grow on the parched red earth. We spotted brumbies (feral horses), kangaroos, emus and eagles but none of the camels freed by the cameleers who played such a vital role in the construction of the railway and who were mistakenly thought to be Afghans, or 'Ghans. Hence the name of the train!
It was when I exited the train into brutal heat and clouds of flies that I really appreciated how comfortable it is to see the Outback from the train! A bus took us the 18kms to Simpsons Gap in the West MacDonnell Ranges. There's a permanent waterhole at its foot. It is starkly, breathtakingly and totally unexpectedly beautiful. We even saw a rock wallaby.
A quick visit to the Alice Springs War Memorial from where there is a good view of the town and we were back on the train ready to leave again at 18:15. More difficult decisions regarding our choice of food had to be taken that evening and a much better night's sleep was had once we'd understood that ear-plugs are useful.
The next morning we woke to completely different countryside. The red earth and Mulgas had gone, replaced by much denser, green vegetation and termite nests but our distant horizon had also shrunk to within a few metres of the train.
At 9:00 we pulled into Katherine, greeted by a large “beware of snakes” sign! Here we undertook our second excursion: a boat cruise through the Nitmiluk Gorge where you can normally spot salt-water crocociles. We saw none but we did see some prehistoric rock art.
Four hours later we were back on the train enjoying our last lunch. Kangaroos had given way to buffalo and huge termite mounds. Where water had been inexistent the day before, here it was ever present. Spectacular storm clouds filled the sky as we trundled slowly over the East Arm bridge, from which we could see Darwin on the horizon to our left, and finally pulled into the train station, 17km from the city centre at 17:30, 41 hours after our departure. The destination was unimportant. It was the journey that mattered.
We were guests of Great Southern Rail (now known as Journeys Beyond Rail Expeditions)
Although the fare might at first seem expensive, it is an extraordinarily good deal. At the same cost per kilometre (between 29 and 30p) as a no-frills London-Edinburgh journey, this one includes two comfortable nights in a private room, two excursions, six meals, breakfast in the desert and all drinks. The all-inclusive fares from Adelaide to Darwin (or vice-versa) vary according to whether you travel in high, shoulder or low season. For a Gold Service twin cabin fares range from A$2,849 per person to A$1,649 and for a single cabin from A$2,699 to $1,549. The whole range of fares, timetables and booking forms can be found on www,journeybeyondrail.com.au
