Kuranda Scenic Railway
Encyclopedia
Cairns, Queensland
Cairns is a regional city in Far North Queensland, Australia, founded 1876. The city was named after William Wellington Cairns, then-current Governor of Queensland. It was formed to serve miners heading for the Hodgkinson River goldfield, but experienced a decline when an easier route was...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
to the nearby town of Kuranda
Kuranda, Queensland
Kuranda is a town on the Atherton Tableland in Far North Queensland, Australia, it is 25 kilometres from Cairns, via the Kuranda Range road. It is surrounded by rainforest. At the 2006 census, Kuranda had a population of 1,611.-History:...
. The tourist railway snakes its way up the Macalister Range and is no longer used for regular commuter services. It passes through the suburbs of Stratford
Stratford, Queensland
Stratford is a suburb 7 kilometres north of Cairns, Queensland, Australia. The population is about 2,000. It is at the base of Mount Whitfield and Lumley Hill and on the banks of the Barron River....
, Freshwater (stopping at Freshwater Station) and Redlynch before reaching Kuranda. The line is used for some freight services and other passenger services, such as The Savannahlander
The Savannahlander
The Savannahlander is a railmotor service that operates in Queensland, Australia. The train travels from the coastal town of Cairns to Forsayth. The service was once operated by QR Traveltrain but is now run under contract by a private operator...
.
Attractions
The tropical gardenTropical garden
A tropical garden features tropical plants and requires good rainfall or a decent irrigation or sprinkler system for watering. These gardens typically need fertilizer and heavy mulching....
s Kuranda rail station are a well-known attraction in the area. Downhill the line cuts through the Barron Gorge National Park
Barron Gorge National Park
Barron Gorge National Park is a national park in Queensland , 1,404 km northwest of Brisbane and 2 km from Kuranda. Barron Gorge is part of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area. The Kuranda Scenic Railway line passes through the park with a station at Barron Falls. One train runs from...
. The tourist train stops at a lookout, with a sweeping view of Barron Falls
Barron Falls
Barron Falls is where the Barron River makes its descent from the Atherton Tablelands to the Cairns coastal plain, in Queensland, Australia. Protected within the Barron Gorge National Park, the volume of water seen in the upper photo only occurs after substantial rainfall during the wet season...
. A number of smaller waterfalls are passed, including Stoney Creek Falls
Stoney Creek Falls
Stoney Creek Falls are found in the Barron Gorge National Park, north-east of Cairns, in Queensland, Australia. The falls are formed where Stoney Creek starts to descend in steps from the shoulders of the gorge. The falls are best known for the curved lattice railway bridge that passes in front of...
, just metres from the train. As the train travels up and down, a detailed commentary of the railway's construction is provided.
History
The railway was completed as far as Kuranda in 1891. Many lives were lost as numerous tunnels and bridges were built. The first operation of a tourist train from Cairns to Kuranda was in 1936, using four longitudinal seating carriages. In 1995 major repairs had to be carried out after a severe rock fall damaged the track.On the 26th of March 2010 the train was derailed by a landslide injuring 5 of the 250 passengers on board. The service was closed until the 7th of May 2010 while a geotechnical review of the track and risk assessments were completed.