Colin Churcher 2020

  A freight train at a wayside station This line branches at Uyuni from the "main line" to the Chilean border. I went over it twice, once right through to Villazon and a second time by track car. The area is high, but not as high as further north One of the first things we came across on the track car was a boxcar occupying the main line without authority. The crew, with no radio were transferring from one box car to the other.  We helped them push the car by hand out of our way.  This line even had a passenger service although not on this day. The terrain is pretty rough in parts Even the llamas have trouble getting out of the way In some parts the land is very unstable A typical wayside station A freight train approaches running north. We were expecting it and were in the clear. Villazon is a little unpretentious for a border station There were a lot of people waiting for the arrival of the train from Oruro and Uyuni There was a mad scramble for some to get out and for ...

  I should mention right from the start that when I went over this line on 7 February 2002 this was the highest operating railway in the world.  A higher line in Peru had been closed (I believe it has now been reopened) while the Chinese were building a much higher line in Tibet. We started off early from the hotel in Uyuni having slept under five blankets. It gets cold up there at night and the press of the bed clothes had me feeling like I had slept in a printing press.  The line from the Chilean border through Uyuni was well used by freight trains and much of it was being relaid with better rail. The first part of the journey was to run back towards Oruro as far as Rio Mulatto where the line to Potosi branches off.  We experienced the new rail earlier than expected. We were approaching a road crossing at a good clip when we lurched to a sudden stop with a loud bang. It appeared that new rails had been laid out along the line ready to be installed but one had been ...

The Dreaded South American Electric Shower My advice is don't! The water is heated by electricity and the water from the showerhead can give a kick if it is not properly maintained.  I received a good jolt from one in Guatemala when I touched the water control handle while under the shower. It is best to take a cold shower or use the wash hand basin. A freight train is waiting at the south gate of the Oruro yard for permission to enter. Having had an invigorating cold shower. I joined the small group in the track car to make our way south to Uyuni after the freight had cleared.  There was myself, two government inspectors and a couple from the railway. The driver was an Aymara railway employee. While waiting for the freight I asked to see our clearance. The driver announced "It is number fourteen." I asked "Let me see it please."  He replied "It is number fourteen." I asked again at which there was a quick fire conversation in Spanish and Aymara, after...

  When I first visited Bolivia the staff system was still in operation on the Cochabamba branch from Oruro.  It had been discarded when I made my inspection and now the line is not used. I was presented with one of the staffs from this line - it is a treasured possession. I showed a photo of it in an earlier blog. It looks as if this machine has been cleaned and painted specially for the visit of the Latin American Railway Congress The line to Cochabamba runs through difficult terrain keeping to a river valley.  It is subject to frequent land slides The ground is very unstable.  We stopped at a village close to Cochabamba for a quick break.  These track cars are larger than the zorras but cannot be turned as easily.  Because this is narrow gauge hy-rail trucks cannot be used. It is lunch time in the main street and there is absolutely nothing happening in this village. Going on a little further we came across this illegal track car that had been left on the...