We were up early (7.45am - late for some, but early for us. In our working life we often had 5.00am starts so one of the joys of retirement is getting out of bed after 8.30am). Our chauffeur to the station (our wonderful neighbour Julia) arrived punctually at 9.00am, so did the rain drops! The rain stayed with us for the first half of our trip but then the sun came out and stayed with us through to the station in East Perth.
We checked in nice and early, got our tiny ticket boarding pass and went for a coffee. Then they announced that we could board the train.
We found our coach/car and climbed aboard. We found our cabin and settled in.
It was very exciting and at exactly 11.55am we started to move out of the station.
Our car hostess, Olivia, came by and went through the familiarisation of the cabin, the off train excursions etc. Then Casey, our dining car hostess came by and we booked our dining room sittings, it was all so very pleasant and very professional. The train slowly passed through the eastern suburbs of Perth and out to the little town of Toodyay. But progress was sooo slow, by the time we got to Toodyay we were already 20 minutes late. As we passed through the town of Northam we went down to lunch. We sat with a couple from New Zealand who had been on a cruise around the south of Australia, spent time in Perth and were taking to train back to Sydney before flying home. (there were a lot of these kiwis on the train, all having a great time.)
Lunch was our first meal on the train and it was fantastic - rolls with macadamia butter and quince jam, Jewfish or veal for main course and a yummy cheeseboard. The Vasse Felix Semillon Sauvignon Blance was a very smooth accompaniment.
Progress was even slower after lunch and by the time we reached Kellerberrin, in the wheatbelt we were 2 hours behind schedule. The whole journey was a very stop, start affair and finally at 5.30pm they announced that due to severe flooding over the track we would be delayed and the 'off train' excursion of Kalgoorlie would be cancelled. We sat at a siding for about 3 hours and continued to edge slowly forward. I overheard one staff member telling a fellow passenger that they were trying to clear the water off the tracks, had pumps going but if they couldn't clear it the 'worst case scenario' would be that we would have to return to Perth. They were also trying to find a driver to fill in once our present driver reached his legal hours limit.
We continued to edge slowly forward. After the town of Merredin we had a lovely sunset and the country opened up. Those rain clouds were still overhead.
We went to dinner (7.30pm sitting), sharing the table with a couple who had been in WA for around 10 years, were originally from NSW.
Another lovely meal, Smoked chicken salad, Tuna steak or Beef steak for mains followed by chocolate mousse or cheese plate.
Whilst at dinner our cabin had been converted into our bedroom, with the bunk beds turned down. We had an early night, remembering to put the clocks forward one hour as we headed eastward.
Michael gallantly took the top bunk and was soon sleeping soundly. All the bumps, grinds and rattles of the train and cabin meant that I had a less peaceful sleep. I saw the sights of what I think was the town of Southern Cross and saw our slow, quiet passage through the Kalgoorlie railway station. (around 2.00am)
We were wakened at 6.40am with our requested early morning cuppa and found that we were still in Western Australia, somewhere called Emu Flat.
We showered, dressed and went down to breakfast, sitting with our dining friends from last night. Breakfast was another feast, juices, cereal and full cooked options.
We had made up some time during the night, by cancelling the Kalgoorlie stop over and the train was now running only an hour and a half behind schedule.
We were now travelling across the Nullarbor plain, a plateau about twice the size of England, the world's largest single exposure of limestone bedrock. covering about 200,000 square km.
We pulled into the siding of Rawlinna whilst we were having breakfast. Rawlinna is the largest sheep station in Australia, 2.5 million acres. Today it stocks more than 70,000 sheep and the siding is the disembarkation point for jackaroos and jillaroos. Also in Rawlinna is a small lime mine, with the extracted limestone being used in the gold production process in Kalgoorlie.
The train dropped off mail and we carried on to the next mail stop for the station at Nurina.
As we slowed down and then came to a stop in Nurina we were aghast to see about 20 dead camels next to the rail track. The carcasses had obviously been there some time and were bloated and rotting in the rain. One English passenger thought that the 'farmer' should have moved them. We were just grateful that they hadn't caused a derailment. Although it was a sad sight.
Considering that the 'farmer's' land probably covered an area the size of Belgium and the camels were possibly hit by a train (and then shot if injured), it really showed what life out here is like.
The weather continued to be overcast with drizzle. There was still a lot of water on the ground. A member of the train crew said that when they had travelled to Perth on Friday ( it's now Monday) the area had been totally dry. Just one day of thunderstorms had produced all that water - hopefully some fell where the farmers need it.
After Rawlinna we were travelling the longest straight stretch of railway in the world, the 478km track between Rawlinna in Western Australia and Oodea in South Australia. The next stop after Nurina was the township of Forrest.
There's an airstrip in Forrest, with refuelling facilities and a fly-in-fly-out Bed and Breakfast.
We read, relaxed and napped until lunchtime, 1.00pm. We sat with a couple from the Peak District in UK, on holiday in Aus visiting their son in Sydney and taking the opportunity to travel on the Indian Pacific.
After passing through Deakin we crossed into South Australia and passed through Hughes (places named after Australian Prime Ministers), we pulled into the little station/outpost of Cook.
We were stopping here for around 30 minutes so we all interrupted our lunch and disembarked.
Cook is 1523km from Perth and 1138km from Adelaide and the closest highway, the Eyre Highway is 100km away. The nearest town, Ceduna, is a 5 hour drive away and the local doctor in about 12 hours away. The train brings supplies to the little town.
When the railway was completed in 1917 small settlements were established across the Nullarbor, along the line every 30km apart to assist with line maintenance. Cook developed into a major base for line crews and provided accommodations for railway crews. It was a thriving community with a school, a hospital, a swimming pool, golf course,general store and houses for around 200 people. The town dwindled in population following privatisation of the railway in 1997 and now has a permanent population of just 4.
It is a refuelling stop for the train.
It provided a welcome stretch of the legs, but those rain clouds had not left us, and it started to rain again.
We climbed back on board, found our lunch table and had our dessert.
After Cook the scenery changed and once we'd crossed the Nullarbor we were into red dirt country and there were trees!
We were travelling along the southern boundary of the Maralinga Defence area and the Woomera Prohibited Area but there was nothing but red dirt and scrub. Woomera is Australia's rocket testing range established in 1940s and Marlalinga is Australia's atomic test site, used in 1950s but still 'off limits'.
We passed through Tarcoola which was named after a horse - the horse that won the Melbourne Cup the same year that gold was found at this outpost - 1893. Tarcoola is also where the Indian Pacific and the Ghan tracks meet, with the Ghan heading north from here.
As we headed on towards Adelaide, Port Augusta during the night and after another early awakening, but not breakfast, we arrived at Adelaide's Parkland Terminal at 7.20am on Tuesday morning, right on schedule.
Those people continuing on to Sydney headed off for their selected 'off train tour', we collected our bags and headed to the taxi rank. It was a pleasant short ride into town and our hotel, surely Adelaide peak hour isn't always this quiet?
We had previously contacted the hotel regarding leaving our bags with the concierge, as check in time was after 1.00pm but had a very pleasant surprise - our room was ready!
Well done Stamford Plaza.
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