6 minute read
TRAVEL
TRAVEL Taieri Gorge THE IMPROBABLE THE IMPROBABLE RAILWAY LINE RAILWAY LINE
By Vern Walker
YOU could say that railway lines and the locomotives that ride upon them are in my genes. As a youngster, the rail trip from Invercargill to Bluff was a summer highlight. When the pungent smells of the Ocean Beach Freezing Works heralded the arrival of our family, at Bluff.
Since then, I have rumbled around Europe in the company of my orange-covered Thomas Cook timetable. A day trip to the Roof of Europe, at Jungfraujoch, Switzerland, where light aircraft can be spotted flying below you! I have blurred past rural Japan on the Shinkansen. I have ridden on the high Pikes Peak Cog Railway, Colorado, where you gasp for oxygen. I have travelled on the
tracks from Auckland to Invercargill and have straddled the South Island on the TranzAlpine.
As I approached the Dunedin Railway Station my day was brightened by the blaze of colour from the beds of springtime tulips, amidst a swathe of manicured lawns. This historic building was completed in 1906, in the aftermath of the boom times of the gold rush. This building commands your attention. The facade conveys the colours of a chocolate log, etched in creamy Oamaru stone. One imagines it was built by homesick Scots to remind them of their own Waverley Station, located in Edinburgh. A recall of Edwardian Britain, with the floors of the station rooted in thousands of Royal Doulton tiles, and with the ticket booths of old - sadly no longer used.
We eased out of Dunedin, past what is no longer old Carisbrook. Where, from its mud gave rise to the “enemies” of my Southland Fifteen - the Otago and All Black talent of: Ron Elvidge, Kevin Skinner and Bill Meates.
To Wingatui, where the first sod was turned on 7 June 1879, and onto the Taieri Gorge Railway (TGR). Beyond Wingatui the route turns sharply inland to the northwest and the Wingatui Viaduct. A massive undertaking, the length of two rugby fields, and soaring to 47 metres. Perched on a latticework of iron that reminded me of the Meccano set of my youth.
We soon entered the gorge itself. Yawning chasms, with steep downward views of the Taieri River far below. A river that was benign, but after torrents of rain could quickly revert to a look-alike churning vanilla milkshake. Bastions of schist, held together by hopeful outcrops of gorse. Ledges just wide enough to accommodate the TGR. Echoing through tunnels blasted by dynamite and bricked over to hold them in place. A vista of bald hills, a testament to the harsh winters and blizzards. Blistering summer heat. Mammoth clefts with dizzying heights that required the ultimate skills of doubting engineers. A route of ten tunnels, 35 bridges and viaducts. Finally, to the bleak and lonely terminus at Pukerangi.
We clattered past little stations, thankfully spruced up with a lick of paint: of cream and carefully trimmed in red and maroon. Now silent waypoints that have the memory of a more crowded history, than the quieter times of today.
I left the chatty commentary, and varnished interior of the carriage to take photographs from the small platform located between the carriages. Here, it was shake, rattle
and roll. So much so that there was a real possibility that my mobile phone camera would skitter onto the tracks whizzing just below me - as my torso leaned into the wind. I was determined to capture the ‘pic’ any railway buff was keen on - that of photographing the train as it entered a long curve. Especially when the parrot-yellow livery of the TGR is such a sunny spot in any photo.
In the many decades gone by, travel on the TGR was for essential reasons: travel to the schoolhouse, to attend a wedding, or to check on stock. Today, luxury cruise liners call at Port Chalmers and disgorge tourists, many of them Americans and Australians. No doubt they compare their TGR experience with their own Silverton and Durango Railroad - which also follows a tumbling mountain river, or the Cairns to Kuranda excursion, ascending through tropical rainforest to the Great Dividing Range. But such tourists would be first to agree that the TGR has its very own brand of scenic splendour.
Being a lover of history, I have published a family story titled: FROM SAILING SHIPS TO MICROCHIPS (1769-2009). Therein is a family connection of sorts to the TGR. This, in the sense that my maternal great-great grandfather, Englishman Matthew Shirley, struck it lucky in Gabriels Gully. He then decided to trudge all the way to Dunedin, via the inland route. He passed by Momona (Dunedin airport), and onto the gateway of south Dunedin, at Wingatui. This caused me to reflect that I must have crossed the route, at some point that a weary Matthew traversed - in 1862.
I look back on this four hour and 110-kilometre outing, and quickly realise that this is much more than a touristic experience. I carry a degree of guilt, that it is in modernday comfort that we travel. But to me history shouts even louder than the savage scenery we had passed by. It shouts of those magnificent and whiskery men, who in the desperation of the great Depression of the day, wielded their pickaxes and shovels, and carved a steel pathway along such an improbable route.
YOUR INVESTMENT IN YOUR HOLIDAY IS SAFE
COVID-19 has presented many problems for travel providers especially when insurance companies won’t cover you for a cancelled holiday if impacted by COVID-19 Alert Level restrictions.
The team at Seemore Tours can assure you that your investment in your holiday is safe. So, what happens when you have a holiday booked and COVID impacts the ability to travel? 1. Seemore Tours will first look to postpone the tour. 2. If this new date doesn’t suit, then you can transfer your trip to another tour. Any price difference is either returned or invoiced. 3. If neither of the above options suit then Seemore Tours will offer you a full refund.
“When our tour was affected by the first lockdown we were very impressed with how Seemore Tours managed this. We first received a call where we discussed the options, this was then followed through with email communications and in due-course a new date was set. We were fortunate that this new date suited us, although it was comforting to know we had options
A SMALL TOUR GROUP ENJOYING THE GARDENS AT THE TARANAKI GARDEN FESTIVAL FROM LEFT; CAROLE, EDITH, RICKY, JAN, NAIDA.
to transfer to a different tour or receive a full refund.”
– Gael & Jimmy Fong, Auckland To learn more about Seemore Tours and the holidays they have on offer, visit their website seemoretours.co.nz or contact the
team on 0800 733667 for more.
THE SEASON FOR GIVING Book to
Let’s make summer special when you book a holiday and mention ‘Active Retirees’ to receive this timeless leather to receive this timeless leather and canvas travel bag set worth $150!
Forgotten World H/way & Ruapehu 17-20 January 2022 Twin share $2,155 | Single $2,395 Great Barrier Island 11-14 February 2022 Twin share $2,195 | Single $2,495
South Island High Country 25-31 January 2022 Twin share $3,495 | Single $3,995 Summer in Northland 27 February - 5 March 2022 Twin share $3,190 | Single $3,890
The Deep South & Stewart Island 26 January - 2 February 2022 Twin share $3,695 | Single $4,295 Top of the South 11 - 19 March 2022 Twin share $4,995 | Single $5,695
To learn more about these tours or other holidays visit our website or contact Nikki on the details below. Phone: 0800 SEEMORE (733667) / 021 990 141 Email: nikki@seemoretours.co.nz
* Bag is subject to availability and may differ if stocks run low. Offer only available until 31 January 2022.
