I MADE my first trip to South Africa in 1983. My parents had moved there a year or so earlier for work, and it was time for my first real foreign railway experience. Steam was very much still active at that time, and I soon became a fan of the 3ft 6in-gauge South Africa Garratts, which – at close to 200 tons – looked and sounded wonderful.
Near to where my parents lived was a branch line from Pretoria to Magaliesburg, which had a daily trip formed of a few wagons and one passenger coach that was 100% steam-hauled with either a Class 19D 4-8-2 or, on rare occasions, a Class 24 2-8-4. It was a slow working, dropping off the odd wagon and picking another one up at some of the small stations along the way in what seemed like the middle of nowhere.
Scenes like this were something new to me and fascinating to watch. There were still local trip workings near to where I lived in Britain, but nothing like this. Witnessing these scenes 40 years ago certainly got me very interested in foreign railways, especially African ones.
Fast forward to 2023 and I decided to take this year’s trip to a new level. The plan was to hire a 4x4 vehicle from Bushlore – complete with rooftop tent and all the necessary camping equipment, including a small fridge, a couple of gas burners and BBQ – and head north towards Namibia.
Leaving Cape Town
Before departing Cape Town,
