A journey aboard the Sisonke is like a trip into the golden era of travel; when time was never hurried, and the steam train embodied romance on wheels. Winding through the foothills of the Drakensberg, the Sisonke rolls at a stately pace. As you gaze out from one of the Edwardian carriages, you will feel like a bygone explorer in the wilds of KwaZulu-Natal.
We began our journey in the rural dairy-lands of Creighton, climbing through hillocks dotted with kraals and eddy’s of smoke. It takes roughly four hours to reach Underberg, where a tapestry of mountains paints the horizon, and ends the line. The journey is split over several days however, stopping by local stations and combining tours of the historic missions, as well as trips up Sani Pass onto the roof of Lesotho.
The Sisonke comprises twenty-odd compartments, each cocooned in wood paneling with a double bed and shower en-suite. Once the porters have helped you settle into your cabin, welcome drinks are served in the lounge coach. As we drew out of Creighton station, the heavens opened and fog misted the windows. Inside felt like a private gentleman’s club – warm and snug, complete with velvet armchairs, dimly lit lamps and a beautiful teak long bar.
Later that evening I met with train driver Tommie van Blerk; a salt-of-the-earth type man whose been working the rails for nearly forty years. Tommie showed me the gauges, pumps and dials up front, while puffing on a Stuyvesant and pumping his foot against the brake pad. Despite having all the airs and graces of a traditional steam locomotive, Tommie explained that burning tons of coal is just no longer feasible. Today the Sisonke is pulled by a diesel engine, although the whistle still uses an old-fashioned chord system, nostalgic of an era long gone.
The bell to dinner summoned us to a classic Edwardian dining coach, where liveried staff plated up an impressive three-course supper. Drawing the blinds over rain-splattered windows I retired to my cabin feeling like Lady Chatterley aboard the Orient Express. It’s hard to imagine that many years before, this line chugged rural workforces into the mines surrounding “˜Maritzburg. Having lain dormant for the better half of a century, the Sisonke breathes new life into tired tracks, taking you into an imaginary landscape aboard the Age of Steam.
The Sisonke is managed by Signature Life Hotels. Tel. 0313126250, e-mail [email protected] for enquiries.
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