Spanning the Continent

No doubt most of you reading this have already travelled across the Nullarbor in an RV, but have you seen the beauty and raw vastness of Australia aboard a true icon of this country? The Indian Pacific, so named because of the two oceans it joins, is an epic rail journey of three days and three nights.

Forty one years ago the Indian Pacific train finally connected the east and west in a single trip. Prior to this, train tracks varied from state to state, forcing passengers to change trains during their journey. The total journey from Perth to Sydney covers 4,352 kilometres, passing all sorts of terrain, from the flat landscape of the Nullarbor Plain to the rugged cliffs of the Blue Mountains, and all that in between. During this you will travel the longest straight stretch of rail track in the world, an impressive 478km.

The well-worn quote, ‘it’s not the destination but the journey’ really rings true for the Indian Pacific and now all you have to do is sit back, relax, and watch Australia pass you by the window. There are interesting stops along the way, allowing you depart the train and stretch your legs. The east-bound itinerary began in Perth and stopped at Kalgoorlie, Cook, Adelaide and Broken Hill before journeying past the Blue Mountains, bound for Sydney Central.

There are different types of carriage options to suit most budgets, including Red, Gold or Platinum Service cabins. I rode in style in Gold, enjoying my own three seater lounge by day turned twin berth sleeper at night, with ensuite. From the moment we boarded in Perth and were welcomed with a complimentary glass of bubbly, we knew we were in for something special.

The Queen Adelaide Restaurant Car dished up scrumptious meals breakfast, lunch and dinner (included in the Gold Class fare). You could look forward to a hearty breakfast of chipolatas, bacon, mushrooms, tomato and eggs how you like them, served by friendly staff members — nothing is too much trouble. A two-course lunch prepared by the train’s chefs (two chefs per restaurant) was always tasty and filling, followed later by a three-course dinner. You may start with a bacon and potato soup, tender beef for the main and chocolate pudding with double cream or cheese platters for dessert. The meals were always different and presented beautifully and of course, tasted great!

Allowing enough time to digest our meals, we arrived at our first scheduled stop at 9:50pm at the twin towns of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, Australia’s largest outback city. I opted to go on one of the Whistle Stop Tours for a minimal fee.

Hopping onto a bus, we cruised around the wide streets, while our guide filled us in on the town’s gold rush era. We gazed down at the Super Pit, the biggest gold open pit mine in Australia and the wind up here almost blew me away.

I gratefully jumped back onto our warm bus as it passed Kalgoorlie’s historic buildings, some now in need of repair after a recent earthquake. From windblown Kalgoorlie, our next leg of the journey was along the isolated Nullarbor Plain.

The Nullarbor Plain is covered with green shrub and orange dirt with only the occasional thin tree, the odd beer bottle, discarded tyres and a number of small rocks plonked about. The land stretched as far as the eye can see. You could go mad counting the rocks and shrub, so you’d have more luck recording the number of trees, animal bones or bird nests built upon posts.

When asked how the Indian Pacific compares with driving across the Nullarbor, one passenger replied, “With this, everything is done for you. If you take your caravan across the Nullarbor you have to be on the ball the whole time, watching the road, knowing you have the van behind you...in fact, the only time I really concentrated on this train journey was while reading a book! Yes, sometimes life is tough.”

Jessica Playford from the Indian Pacific points out, “You can drive one way across Australia then travel back in the comfort of the train,” providing your camper-trailer or campervan meets the height and width requirements.

The Indian Pacific is not only a leisurely way to travel from the west to the east (or vice versa), but plays an integral role to the lives of people living out here. Along this journey it drops off mail, food and equipment to remote townships.

The train pulled up at the settlement of Forrest (name after a former WA premier and explorer who undertook the first west to east land crossing of WA, not forest of the tree variety). Forrest is roughly 600km east of Kalgoorlie-Boulder. Only two people live here now and they refuel and maintain the long airstrip, plus own a B&B. While Forrest casts a solitary figure on the barren landscape, there is a constant stream of light aircrafts landing to refuel and the frequent visits from the Indian Pacific.

Our next scheduled stop was at Cook on the Nullarbor Plain, one of the world’s most isolated townships. A sign by the railway informs visitors we are 130km from the WA/SA border, 868km from our last stop, Kalgoorlie, 1523km from Perth, and 1138km from Adelaide.

Cook was originally built to serve the trans-continental railway and relied on the Tea and Sugar Train for supplies. Now, Cook’s population is only about five, and there isn’t much around except a few buildings and a souvenir store. The place was still a hive of activity when we visited, with train passengers spilling out to stretch their legs and explore, plus a good number of camper-trailers had pulled up.

Back on board, more of the same scenery flashed by the windows until the train made a surprising stop. The landscape hadn’t changed, there was no platform, no apparent town, and it was only after spotting a white 4WD next to the tracks and a small group of Aboriginals carrying bags that I realised why the train was stationary.

We had in fact reached Watson, a remote railway siding. The aboriginal passengers bound for Adelaide hopped on, having already travelled for two hours to meet the train. We learn because of the harshness of this land, if a passenger is dropped off at one of these designated stops and there is no one waiting to pick them up, they are made to stay on the train.

As we travel this iconic railway we learn snippets about people who live out here, in what seems to be the middle of nowhere.

Ziggy was a regular sight for passengers and crew of the Indian Pacific. The Polish-born recluse would wave at trains coming past his township of Barton, located 1,708km from Perth. He supposedly lived in Barton with his eight dogs, not wanting to leave his home by the railway like so many before him had.

Ziggy had no phone or electricity. His corrugated iron house by the track was ‘renovated’ with old railway sleeps and disused railway parts long abandoned by railway workers. While Ziggy passed away a few years ago, his memory lives on with the Indian Pacific crew who tell his tale as the train passes Barton.

That night the Indian Pacific left the outback and crawled to a stop in Adelaide in the morning light. For some passengers this was the end of the train journey, for others it was only the beginning. For myself, our stop in Adelaide meant a Whistle Stop tour of Adelaide’s Central Market. Mark Gleeson took us up and down the market as we stopped here and there to sample creamy double brie cheese, chocolate-coated strawberries, and Russian Piroshki, a baked stuffed bun. A million people browse the markets per month, making it the most visited spot in South Australia. While I could have browsed the markets for hours and hours, the train was waiting.

As the Indian Pacific departed Adelaide, I took a seat in the Outback Explorer Lounge to meet our new arrivals. It was here that I met caravanners Des and Gail. The couple were completing the journey they started in ’69. Back then Des and Gail boarded the Indian Pacific at Perth, bound for Adelaide, as strangers. Forty-one years later they hopped on at Adelaide as a married couple to finish the Adelaide to Sydney leg of their train trip. “It’s been so relaxing,” enthused Gail.

The view from our expansive windows changed from typical suburbia scenes to farms with curious cows. The bitumen disappeared and dusty dirt tracks began snaking their way past the rail line. Green rolling hills gave way to a sun-bleached landscape with the odd crumbing ruin, and then that all too familiar red dirt, dotted with the occasional rustic windmill, dominated the landscape. The train followed the rise and falls of the Barrier Range to our next stop.

Broken Hill lies in the far, far west of New South Wales, 1100km from Sydney. The isolated town is another stop rich in resources, being where the Broken Hill Proprietary Company was born. The Line of Lode is one of the largest ore bodies in the world at 7.5km long and 250m wide.

The Whistle Stop bus tour passed old mining equipment and artist Pro Hart’s sculptures as it toured down streets named after minerals. We soon discovered everything is big in Broken Hill. We visited the Big Picture, a mammoth canvas that measures almost 100m long, and were dwarfed by a gigantic park bench perched on the top of the mullock heap. The moving Miners Memorial remembers the workers who perished while working the mines.

As the Indian Pacific continues on its route, we passed from the barren outback to lush green hills as we travelled to Lithgow. Surprisingly, it was here that I spotted kangaroos for the first time on the trip.

Lithgow in the early morning light was a sight to behold. Horses stood to attention on frosted grass, smoke puffed out of chimneys, and the track was enveloped by ferns and gum trees.

The scenery only turned more spectacular as the Indian Pacific slowly climbed its way through the Blue Mountains. Passengers had their foreheads glued to the windows, catching glimpses of the valley below. What a finale.

As the train slowed to a stop at Sydney Central Station, we stepped off in good spirits, having just enjoyed one of Australia’s great train journeys. Now we were ready for our next adventure – exploring Sydney.

THANKS TO

Great Southern Rail
For information on the Indian Pacific, visit:
www.gsr.com.au or phone 13 21 47.

ATTRACTIONS ON THE WAY

Adelaide Central Market
www.adelaidecentralmarket.com.au

Central Market Tour
[email protected]
www.centralmarkettour.com.au

TOURIST INFORMATION

Kalgoorlie
Kalgoorlie Goldfields Visitor Information Centre
1800 004 654

Broken Hill
Broken Hill Visitor Information Centre
(08) 8080 3560