Train buffs dream on La Trochita

Argentines affectionately call her La Trochita, which literally translated means ’little gauge’.

But thanks to Paul Theroux and his classic 1978 travel book, the rest of the world now knows her as the legendary Old Patagonian Express.

Theroux described it as ’the railway almost at the end of the world’ and he was spot on. Originally 400 kilometres long, the route passes through some of the most inhospitable terrain imaginable in the foothills of the Andes in a barren corner of Argentina. It’s amazing that a railway was ever built here in the first place, and even more staggering that a part of it is still functioning almost a century later.

My obsessive desire to travel on this legendary train had landed me in Bariloche, the unofficial capital of Argentina’s Lake District in the country’s south west, and a two-hour flight from the capital, Buenos Aires.

And that’s when the fun began.

I had anticipated numerous travel companies battling to sell me a tour featuring La Trochita.

I was wrong.

The tour companies I tried, and there are plenty of them in Bariloche, shrugged their collective shoulders and waved me away. Even the official tourist bureau had no literature or even a timetable. The officer also warned me the website would be out of date. She suggested I hired a car and drove down to Esquel or El Maiten, the two stations still apparently operating, and hope for the best.

It being the peak season, there was not a car to be had and the bus schedules were hopeless. Then, as I was beginning to despair, I found Adrian.

In a tiny office in a darkened arcade off one of Bariloche’s side streets, Adrian runs a small travel agency. But that’s all there is that’s small about Adrian. He’s a giant of a man, so big in fact that there was barely room for both of us in his office. But Adrian, to my joy, loves his trains and knows all there is to know about La Trochita. He could even sell me a ticket to ride!

Adrian even had the answer to my problem of getting to El Maiten. "My cousin Myrtha will take you, of course!"

So the following day the marvellous Myrtha, an only slightly scaled-down version of Adrian, picked me up and we set off through the foothills of the Andes for El Maiten. Three hours later we pulled into the dusty town, which could have been a backdrop for an old Western movie.

The station itself was easy to find - and there she was. Black and beautiful, and for many train buffs the Holy Grail of Narrow-Gauge Railways: La Trochita, already puffing smoke and ready to rattle across the Patagonian steppe, with at least one old gringo on board.

In 1908, the Government of Argentina planned an ambitious network of railways across Patagonia. Two main lines would join Bariloche in the central Andes with seaports on both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. Many branch lines were also to be built and the entire network would connect with Buenos Aires.

But World War I and successive ministerial changes meant the project literally ran out of steam before it had even fired up.

There were exceptions though, and in 1921 it was decided to build a 750mm narrow-gauge line between Esquel and Ingeniero Jacobacci via El Maiten. By the late ’40s the railway provided a vital freight and passenger service through this part of Patagonia, but due to competition from road transport the railway fell into decline, and today only two small tourist sections survive: one out of Esquel; the other from El Maiten.

For the aficionado, the line is in possession of 22 steam locomotives (11 Henschel and 11 American Baldwins), seven of which are currently in operation.

El Maiten was, and still is, the maintenance centre for the line and before my departure I took the chance to explore the old works, which - thanks to the usual band of dedicated volunteers - still keep the old girl going today. I wandered around rusting old locos in the overgrown sidings and sidestepped discarded engine parts that were scattered all over the place, But inside a big shed I drooled over a beautiful old Henschel steam locomotive, built in Germany in the early 1920s, and currently undergoing restoration. It was identical to the one about to haul me south to a remote outpost called Desvio Thomae.

After a quick look around the tiny museum, I could hardly wait to jump onboard the famous train.

After finding my seat, which was next to an original wood-fired stove used for heating the compartments during the harsh winters, I made straight for the small dining car.

Seated at a rickety old table on an equally wobbly chair, I celebrated with a cold Quilmes beer as La Trochita blew her whistle and slowly shunted out of El Maiten on her three-hour round trip.

I would love to report that the landscapes were magnificent, but this part of northern Patagonia is for the most part a barren stony desert, dotted with thorny bushes called coirón.

Somehow though, it felt exactly right. Rugged, dramatic and the perfect backdrop for our grand old lady as she rattled along at 25 kilometres per hour.

Apart from the occasional curve, the line ran almost straight and true through the steppe and for most of the journey I abandoned my seat - and the dining car - and sat on the steps between the carriages, blissfully taking in this sublime train ride.

Early on in our journey the train stopped on a bridge crossing the Chubut River and we were invited off to take photographs as La Trochita idled across the divide, smoke billowing from her chimney and her whistle screaming. A magical sight.

At the turnaround point we were also invited onto the riding plate, the drivers proudly pointing out the various instruments on their gleaming oil-fired beauty.

Back in El Maiten, Myrtha asked if I had enjoyed the ride and I couldn’t find words, either in Spanish or English, to describe my emotions. She told me there are plans to reopen the entire route, from Esquel to El Maiten, and I replied that if and when they did, it would be a wonderful excuse to return.