Blog No 26. The Desert Snake-the World's Longest Train

Blog No 26.  The Desert Snake--the World's Longest Train

Michele and I returned from a 22-day journey to northwest Africa with a stopover in Paris.  The highlight was a week voyage on the Swan Hellenic Diana, a 5-star polar ship (a class of its own) that was now traveling north from Antarctica. Our ship departed Dakar, Senegal, scheduled for five stops in Mauritania, the Canary Islands, Morocco, and ending in Casablanca.  Arrangements had been made with Mauritania authorities well in advance, but when our ship made its first stop in Nouakchott the port officials denied entry, despite hours of negotiation by our captain and crew. We expected better luck the next day at the port city of Nouadhibou, but after another long afternoon of negotiations, we were only allowed to step off the ship to walk about briefly on the gangplank. At one of our scheduled stops we hoped to see a camel auction in the desert. We took comfort in our warm interaction with the Mauritania crew who had been waiting to take us on our scheduled land tour, and they were disappointed as well. An eagle-eye passenger identified Mauritania's famous freight train leaving the port that I had not expected to see.  I excitedly took photos of the train in distance beyond the ship grave yard with a telephoto lens.

The Mauritania Railway operates a single track freight train from Nouadhibou to the iron-ore mines of Zouérate, some 700 km northwest into the Sahara Desert.  The train is said to be among the world's five longest trains, consisting of  200 to 270 freight cars with 3 to 4 diesel engines, and takes 15 to 20 hours to complete a trip.  Adventure travelers can schedule a journey on the train, although there are numerous Utube videos of train hoppers who know where the train stops briefly and manage to clammer aboard the freight car, loaded with food, water, warm clothes and sleeping gear. The temperature varies from freezing to extreme heat.  The practice is illegal, the best I can determine.  Seeing the iron-ore train, the grave yard of abandoned ships, and the brief encounter with the Mauritania people, was at least a bright spot in my day.

Graveyard of ships.  End of train can be seen on left as it leaves for the desert.

Abandoned ships in harbor: train cars in background

Michele, Ron and I pose with dock workers

Members of our ship with the dock crew: Diana in background

Train du Desert