TranzAlpine!

I had the most brilliant day! My son took me on a jaunt on the TranzAlpine, regarded as one of the top rail journeys in the world. Many blippers from here and around the world have done this trip, but it was a first for me.

Having to book ahead means you can’t choose the weather, and this was the day after the worst storm this year. As we set off from Springfield the clouds hid the mountains, but the snow clad foothills and countryside made up for that. The snow was right up to the tracks for the first half, and the breathtaking glimpses of the Waimakariri Gorge and other gorges far below made it magical.

At Arthurs Pass we had a short stop and excited tourists had snow fights, or simply caressed the snow.

Then we went through the Otira Tunnel. I timed it at 18 minutes. After the long dark we burst out into a different world of sunshine and greenery, and the snow had retreated to the mountain tops. Everyone gasped in surprise. (It was the same coming back, this time a new lot of tourists gasped at the snow). Then we were told that due to a derailment near Greymouth we would be doing the last 30 minutes in buses. Disappointing, but it was an adventure in itself. The train stopped at a place where the road was close to the line. Several buses were waiting. There was no platform and a bale of hay was placed below two of the exit doors. We had to go down backwards onto the wobbly hay that was a long way down.

Because of the delay we had only 30 minutes in Greymouth before taking to the buses again. This time a ute was employed to make a second step up to the train, but it was still tricky. (See extra shots).

The journey home was as wonderful and exciting as the morning trip. The light was better, the clouds fewer, and the mountains were on display, though the snow at track level had dwindled. I spent a lot of time in the observation car with open sides so that it was clear for photography. The scenery was stunning, but it was  difficult to capture a free, focused shot because of the trees along the line.  I have put a collection in Extras. I don’t know the names of the mountains. One is of Lake Brunner. Some of the shots were taken through the window and have reflections on them, but I want to show the scenes.