 The images on this page were all captured in June 1993 on the steam railroad which runs between George and Knysna in the Western Cape. This run, known of as the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe, serves both passengers and freight with scheduled daily service. According to the train's official website, the George-Knysna line was declared a preserved railway in 1992 and officially handed over to the Transnet Heritage Foundation in 1993, the year that these pictures were taken. At that time there was only a daily return trip from George to Knysna with an average of 40,000 passengers per year. Today approximately 115,000 passengers travel the line annually of whom 70% are foreign tourists. On my journey in 1993, the train did true freight service; not only did it haul several containers but the train actually stopped halfway through the journey in the town of Wilderness to load some timber before continuing on the rest of the way to Knysna. The only webcam in Africa specifically for trains is located along this route at the George Railway Station. This webcam provides images of the steam (& diesel) trains which pass through this station every day except Sunday. To access this webcam, please click HERE. Those familiar with this part of the Western Cape will realise that these pictures do not do adequate justice to the beauty of this region.  If you are interested in steam trains, you might want to visit my Travel Page to see pictures of Darjeeling. I had gone to Darjeeling in the hopes of riding the famous "Toy Train." Unfortunately, I wasn't able to do this. But there are pictures of the train, two of the stations and the narrow gauge rail track at this page.       I am always interested in hearing from other steam railroad enthusiasts. If you have any comments or stories, please visit my E-mail Page to send me an e-mail. |
