THE GHAN

Ghan is short for "Afghan" and is a tribute to the camel drivers from Afghanistan and the British Raj, mainly Pashtuns, who helped build the transcontinental train, the Ghan, across the western Simpson Desert. The first Ghan, the Old Ghan, planned to run from Adelaide to Darwin, was begun in 1877 and not completed until 1929. Hundreds of men, 1,200 camels imported from Afghanistan, horses and mules were enlisted to lay the 1,300 km of track from Port Augusta to Alice Springs. It took 50 years to complete the project, but only halfway to Alice Springs. But the line itself was a mistake. At the time, no one had ever seen water in the dry creeks north of Marree. In fact, the line was built across a plain bordering watersheds to the west and the Channel Country. These short floods inevitably damaged the rails. But this was not the only complication. The first rails, which were too wide, were extended in 1884 from Marree to Oodnadatta with narrower rails, forcing passengers and freight to change engines and cars. Then, from Oodnadatta, to continue to Alice Springs with a camel team. The line was finally extended to Alice Springs in 1929. Travelling with the Ghan was an adventure because the train did not work very well. It was extremely slow and uncomfortable, and was rarely on time. On one occasion, it arrived ten days late in Alice Springs. The last passenger train ran in 1956, but the Old Ghan continued to carry freight and cargo. In the early 1970s, a new route was established to Alice Springs from the Indian Pacific line much further west at Tarcoola. The new Ghan line opened in 1980 and the old Ghan made its last trip in December of that year. The line, extended to Darwin in 2004, is the longest line in the world connecting the north and south of the same continent. The journey from Adelaide to Darwin takes 47 hours. East of Coober Pedy, the Old Ghan Railway is still used by coal mine trains between Maree and Port Augusta, and by the Pitchi Richi tourist train between Quorn and Port Augusta. The track between Maree and Alice Springs is completely abandoned and rusting in the desert...

The train stops alternately at Marla and Coober Pedy. For the latter, the train stops at Manguri, 47 km west of Coober Pedy. Shuttles connect Manguri and Coober Pedy. Departure from Adelaide at 12:15, arrival in Alice Springs the next day at 13:45. The comfort is there in this expensive but extraordinary trip.