Africa steam 2015 - Part 2 - Zimbabwe 

As a child living in ‘Rhodesia’ I travelled from Umtali to Beira for my annual holiday at the sea in one of these trains. Seemed to take forever and stopped at every little siding along the way. Engine driver ‘Portuguese’ stopped at sunrise drew a bucket of hot water and had a shave before continuing on to Beira ..... we kids played alongside the tracks whilst he shaved.

Had no idea Garratt articulated steam locomotives were still in service as of 2015. Thank you for making this video.

A pal from Scotland - Joe Strachan from Inverurie - worked on these lines for many years. Good to see this nostalgic video.

Wow. Trip along Memory lane. In 1974 I was a Fire Man on Rhodesia Railways. I worked out of Bulawayo, on these Garratt locomotives. Thanks for the fun.

When I was growing up in Zambia we called these Garratts 'Puffer Bellies' I remember riding in them from Monze to Livingstone, lots of cinders and a whole lot of fun. Thanks for the memories.

25:18 - 25:57 That scenery with the Garratt steaming along the bridge and the rainbow being there is just so beautiful.

Thank you for this incredible memory throwback to 1987. My father was seconded to ZESA - Zimbabwe's Electricity supply authority at Wankie A and B. I had the guid fortune to be his eldest son and had two memorable sojourns to Zimbabwe, Zambia , Botswana and South Africa - in Apartheid days - not good !! I travelled from TJ to Bulawayo thence to Jo'burg, To PE via the Algoa Bay express and to CapeTown and back via The Trans Karoo xpress then the International train to Bulawayo. An experience I will never forget...ever !! I was invited at 3am in the morning after a braai to present myself at the Wankie Coilliery offices for a footplate ride I would never forget at 6.30am.... I had just stepped off an NRZ footplate ride from TJ to Vic Falls and back on the mail train … how ???? I have never forgotten Africa …. I have never stopped loving Zimbabwe and its incredible people …. I have never been so sad too see the bread basket … the most beautiful, the most successful country and the most loving, trusting, caring people so sadly taken and dumped, raped and left for dead. I cry frequently for my heart is always in Zimbabwe - be it at Wankie, Vic Falls - boiling pot, Kariba, Chinoi, Inyanga - my favourite, the Vumba, Chimanimani, the beautiful Birchenough bridge, the absolutely stunning GREAT ZIMBABWE, Cecil Rhodes grave in the Matopas and the totally breath taking Hwange National Park. I have been so blessed to know this great country and so want it to rise again - to feed Africa and be its centre- its pivot - its heart !! That's how much I love this great country and its incredible people

Does not matter where in the world it is, or what kind of train, the people riding them always seem to smile and wave. Maybe trains bring out the friendly in everyone! Greetings from California.

I once drove a Garrat 15 Class from Vic Falls to Wankie with a full passenger load back in '74 - when I was just eleven years old (you heard right), along with a stoker named Chivassa - the actual driver was back in the dining car playing cards with the chief steward and the conductor. I actually had to emergency halt the train to allow Rhodesian Army sappers to remove Russian landmines from the tracks somewhere up near the escarpment coming out of the Zambezi valley. My son and I just watched this and he had tears in his eyes as I explained everything to him (I was born an orphan in Bulawayo). What is truly bizarre is he has just reached the age where he is allowed to read my autobiography "Acid Alex" and only yesterday started reading about his "grandfather" Sandy ... the driver of that train and the incredible human who taught me everything about being a man and then trusted me with all our lives on that auspicious day ... in an immeasurably beautiful piece of Africa where misery and war have never ended. Utterly Astonishing! Look at this Sandy!!! The old girls are still running!! Amazing what pops up on RU-vid feeds randomly.

Absolutely Superb, brings back a lot of fond memories as I have traveled throughout South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe in the late 70' and 80's as a young kid and teenager with my father....used to love the steam driven sections, especially the 25 Class locos and of course the Garratts :-)

My childhood memory has been came back through this video. Love that steam engine sound. Nothing comparison with it. A deep respect from India.

Top video. Great angles & scenery. That engine sounds so fine. Thank you for uploading it. More vids from you. See you again.

By the way, great film. One of my favorites on RU-vid.

Magnificent footage of these old puffing monsters. Especially at Vic Falls! I remember them from my childhood being used in the mountainous sections around Worcester in South Africa.

Absolutely magnificent. Thank you very much.

It's Always good to see these giants in action.Thanks for an excellent film.

I love that the people on the train are waving to you. That's such a friendly and fun gesture of them.

Unusual but impressive steam locos! Victoria Falls is STUNNING!

Great video! The sounds and scenery take me back to watching the "Mountain" Class 59 Garratts on the E.A.R. & H. although they were oil-burners and fitted with ejectors.

I knowed Zimbabwe. This an amazing and excellent job. Thanks for all TV team. Congratulations from Cordoba city, Argentine.

I remember 414 in blue livery, it took us from Bulawayo to the border at Plumtree where a Botswana loco took us to Mafikeng, and a SAR loco to Jo'burg. This was 25 years ago. Steam was still in regular service in Zimbabwe. In fact, now that I think about it, I've managed travel behind steam from Cape Town to Victoria Falls. Ah, memories.

My friend started his apprenticeship in former Rhodesia. I look forward to showing him these and he’s always reminiscing about his youth. Is great to see the skill is still alive keeping these beautiful old girls going

I have just come across this video,magnificent photography of a timeless classic locomotive. Thankyou😊

Great to see a garrett still in working order after seventy years. A great achievement by the maitainance crew working in very difficult conditiions.

At 3.03 the engine chugs enthusiastically saying “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can .....” at 6.16 he is tired and reaching the destination says “I thought I could, I thought I could, hsss...,”. At 8.18 he is saying “I think I can hss hss..”

these are some of the best videos I cannot stop watching in my life. I really loved travelling by train all my life. too sad my kids will never share the experiences I had

Thank you for this video! My mom worked for UNESCO in the 70s and was an avid photographer. She passed years ago and I got all her photos, but almost none of them are labelled. Quite a few are of trains and autos in either Africa or the Middle East. The trains in this video match what's in some of the photos, which helps place where she took them. So cool to see them still running!!!

In1950’s I was about 8or9 on most Sundays we used to go to Nairobi Railway station specially to see the magnificent machines long live EAR&H l salute you for the sweet memories of my child hood

I have always wanted to see a Bayer Garrett. Magnificent locomotives. 😊

Great clip. Everything looks pretty good, clean.

Amazing rail work...Big like from Romania...Thumbs UP!!!!

Another one of your awesome videos ending with the Garrat on the magnificent bridge overlooking Victoria Falls. It certainly brings back many pleasant memories of a safari I did ending at the superb British Colonial Victoria Falls Hotel right outside the railway station where I was allowed onto the footplate. And of course your capture of those spectacular Victoria Falls with the Garrat is a great bonus.

Great video. I love steam and coil....

Superb video ! 👍🏻

Kochersberg, The most fantastic Railroad video I've ever seen in my life. Good job!

Brilliant video! I really enjoyed this one!

One word... superb.

Trainhopping in Africa must be great adventure. Nice video.

This is awesome. I love your work.

Great video my father used to work for NRZ for many years, good to see some of the trains still running. Hopefully we can get back to the glory days soon enough.

Es gibt kaum tollere Maschinen wie die Garrats. Und hier,im Dampflokreservat Südafrika sind sie sehr gut aufgehoben. Ich liebe sie. Super Aufnahmen

I would love to visit Africa one day. The scenery in this video is spectacular.

I visited Zimbabwe in 1988 and it looked just like this video, including the train.

I am completely at wow to think of how amazing and powerful steam engines were/are. I just love the hissing sound, sound more personal especially @09:40. It's so sad all these engines are now in a desolate state.

Tenho 65 anos ,nunca vi uma locomotiva igual a está das imagens,fiquei apaixonado. Saudações do Brasil.

thanks I loved the video what a tremendous effort you made

Nádherný video,příroda,i ty předpotopní stroje

When I was a kid in the 1950s I saw Garratts working in Western Australia but they were disposed of by 1970,scrapped or sold off,great to see in action.

These Loco's where built at the end of my street ,I live in Gorton Manchester UK and my Grandfather worked at Beyer Peacock as a steam hammer operator ..

Great footage.I must say the railbed is much better maintained then I would of expected.with excellent looking ballest

Reminds me of my years in Wankie, working at Wankie Colliery in the mid seventies. We had 19 class Garrats, my friend Peter Wells maintained the locos. In June 1972 at No. 2 Colliery underground desaster 240 people died. The mine was then closed and we started No. 4 Colliery opencast mine, a new railway line was build from No.2 via No.3 Colliery to No.4 Colliery. We had to cross traditional elephant paths, part of the line ran on an embankment crossing elephants path. There were several encounters with upset elephants, well elephant met elephant you could say. Never had an accident though. But the annoying thing was jumbo went up the embankment on one side sat on its backside and and slid down on the other side, eroding embankment, we forever had to shore up the embankment. It was a fun time working on the mine. Always a pleasure to think back!

I love to see these videos of Garrett locomotives, wonder why we never had them here in the USA.

Piękna lokomotywa!😊

Awesome work

Unusual, locomotive, great video!

I like your style of making a video. :)

loved to travel by train since I was a kid.

My dad worked on Bulawayo station in the 50s. I remember the garrets well. Especially the delivery of the 20th class. I stood on the footplate of one soon after it arrived.

Oh man I will see it, thank you very much.

The chugging and hissing sound ia hypnotic and comforting.

9:40 sounds like me going up a hill lol...

africa old trains is beautiful!!!

Finally a video in HD!!! fantastic

There is a locomotive of this in the museum is in the old central station of the Recife - brasil as far as I know is the only one of this model in South America I took some photos there

No meu tempo de infância era a minha diversão preferida, moramos uma temporada na beira da linha ferroviária no estado do Piaui. Brasil.

最後のザンベジ川のシーンはPCの壁紙にしたいくらいです、美しい！。私は以前（３０年ほど前）にビクトリアフォールズタウンのキャンプ場に滞在し、毎日ビクトリア滝を見に行っていました。残念ながら、そのときは列車を見ませんでした。雨季明けだったので滝の水量はかなりありました。 私の人生でも、アフリカの数カ月の旅はとても良い思い出です。ブラワヨはYWCAに宿泊させてもらいました。 アフリカで列車に乗ったのはタザラ鉄道のみでしたが、アフリカらしい自然の中で良い列車の旅でした。 良い動画をありがとう！！

Love the way this particular train looks, I wish we got more interesting models in O guage but it seems like the really oddball ones are extremely expensive.

A good depict of my old memories when steam driven trains used to rule in India and in every such journey I and my brothers used to have small coal particles eventually drop on our eyes painfully as we preferred to seat widow-side seats. But, today after seeing so much dark clouds of Carbon-dioxide emission or what not, that it throws out, I am happy as they are gone for good. ... Bye Bye ... steam engines ... i love you, but in my sweet memories !

Love the garret loco's its cool to know that these trains have seen survive since the 50's, Firstly with the Rhodesian Railways, then with Zimbabwe Railways. the rod knock is of concern lets hope they maintain them so insure there existence for the future!

Super video!

Fantastic !!.. top filming :)

Wonderful locomotive monsters! Beyer Peacock sure built them well!

This locomotive really breathes, I am in pain with her at 9:50 in the hill.

I never knew how much i liked trains and the very friendly Zimbabwean people ;>

Great footage, beautiful sound! Greetings from the Netherlands 🇳🇱.

such a beast they really preserved it's really nice to see this train

this train took me on very sacred childhood memories....

I would love to visit the railway workshops, that would be a treat. Great vid too.

Thank you!!!! Great!!

es increible que aun sigan en pie estas maravillosa locomotoras articuladas me encantan las máquinas a vapor pues parecen estar vivas comen carbón y agua y cobran vida del reportaje solo puedo decir que es un placer para la vista

Great job.

Nice video! It is railroad culture shock!

Fantastic coverage 👌

0:34 omg my dream location for photo shoot😭😭😭😭😍😍😍😍

Can you imagine the way the driver felt when he took this locomotive out on the rails for the very first time when it was brand new!!

Watched these beautiful engines cross the bridge at Victoria Falls pulling wagon loads of maize in early 1980. Still got my Zimbabwe Independence Medal somewhere.

Nice to see. Thanks. Am from India. Here steam engines discontinued long back

I love steam locomotives because they look and sound like they mean business when they're aproaching.

The locos and coaches are in pristine condition. Like in the UK before Steam traction was run down. I salute the staff of National Railways of Zimbabwe. Everyone of them deserves a medal of Honour for true customer service!

ОБАЛДЕТЬ......СУПЕР КТО ЭТО В РАБОЧЕМ СОСТОЯНИИ ПОДДЕРЖИВАЕТ ПРОСТО КРАСАВЦЫ😮👍👍👍👍👍👍✊✊✊🤝🤝🤝🤝👏👏👏

Got a photo of me as a kid standing next to one of these (bulawayo Express) at Victoria Falls Hotel station, right at the front, some valve opened and a huge jet of steam came out scared me half to death. Great times, fondly remembered.

Really cool train video.

It's always cool to see steam locomotives that are still in service! :) And they are very interesting locomotives as well :)

അടിപൊളി !!!!! From India

Thank you sir....From Kentucky usa

EMD locomotives has beautiful sounds.

I was a fireman n these old girls in the mid seventies. My Dad Joe Kleynhans was the RR chief loco inspector. He served 43years oh the railways ....

Damne ce frumos .

Best affrikan railway video,thank you

The term “preservation” isn’t heard often in any African country but in this instance they had these in a secluded storage area. As Zimbabwe slowly imploded after Mugabe, the money wasn’t there for a lot of things and a couple of the old steam engines were put to work. The country has not maintained its infrastructure in any way and now they’re dealing with sewage mixing in their drinking water. These old Garrets are an amazing example of what high quality really is.