Chugging Along on the Old Patagonian Express

In the foothills of the Andes, deep in Argentine Patagonia, this plain, unpretentious town-reached by a spectacular rail journey- is only beginning to gain a reputation for its skiing, fishing and hiking.

This is the southernmost point in South America that is linked by rail to the rest of the continent’s railroad system. The line, a branch of the General Roca system, is narrow-gauge and its train steam-powered.

With its creaky wooden coaches, the train is novelist and travel writer Paul Theroux’s “Old Patagonian Express,” still chugging along in 1989 . . . but more in the spirit of 1889.

From Esquel the line stretches 249 miles north, generally within sight of the Andes, to Ingeniero Jacobacci, which lies on the broad-gauge main route from the resort city of San Carlos de Bariloche to Buenos Aires.

Twice a week mixed trains, hauling both freight and passengers, ply the Esquel branch, connecting with the Lagos Del Sur (Lakes of the South), a more modern train with sleepers and diners.

On a chilly but bright April morning I stood on the platform at Esquel waiting to board a charter, which I planned to ride halfway up the branch to the railroad’s headquarters town of El Maiten. After spending the night I would continue north to Jacobacci, then board the Lagos Del Sur for Buenos Aires. In all, I would be making a rail journey of 1,328 miles.

We were a small, congenial bunch--10 of us, all rail buffs.

We stood smiling in front of steam locomotive No. 107, a 2-8-2 or Mikado type, built in 1922 by Henschel, a German company. Behind it were coupled a box car, a crew car and first-class coach No. 1125, also built in 1922, but in Belgium.

At the end of the train was a wooden diner of indeterminate age and homespun ambience. Apparently it was a product of the railroad’s own shops in El Maiten.

Under a wide-brimmed leather hat, our engineer looked more like a gaucho than a railroader. He grabbed 107’s whistle cord, gave a couple of toots and the train lurched forward, climbing out of Esquel along high, rocky ledges.

On the valley floor the poplars had turned yellow. I watched the shadow of our train--the silhouette of a steam locomotive, with its dancing smoke plume--move across fields where sheep grazed. Holding tight to the handrail, I stood on the coach’s open platform.

We were given the run of the train--we could sit or stand on the platforms or ride the roofs of the cars, in the locomotive cab or on the tender.

The previous day our southbound charter had been double-headed--two locomotives instead of one. Late in the afternoon, when the train stopped so the locomotives could take on water, I climbed onto the tender of the first engine.

I stood just a few feet from the tapered stack and rusty smokebox of the second engine. Once they got rolling, I was engulfed in sound. A raging, clamoring roar. Black smoke poured from both stacks, but fortunately was blown aside by a strong, chilly wind.

The surrounding scene was dazzling. Hills and valleys flashed yellow-brown in the late sun, the Andes were snowcapped, and above them great puffs of white cumulus clouds darkened to gray. It was exhilarating to be rocking along at 35 m.p.h., with the smoke billowing and the tender dancing underfoot.

Looking over the lead locomotive’s domes and stack as we swung around a curve, I saw a horse on the tracks, head high, staring at the train. The maquinista (engine driver) sounded the whistle in staccato blasts, warning the horse. Finally it turned, eased down the embankment and galloped away.

The train moved through mile after desolate mile remarkably reminiscent of western North America. We saw barren, brown hills where sheep and cattle grazed, backed by soaring mountains, but little sign of human habitation.

The Esquel branch, completed in 1942, was planned as part of an extensive network of narrow-gauge lines crisscrossing Patagonia, a mad scheme that was projected by the government in the 1920s but for the most part was never realized. The 24 locomotives still active, along with most of the freight and passenger cars, date to 1922.

Operations have been unprofitable, with service in recent years down to a pair of mixed trains weekly in each direction, on Sundays and Thursdays, plus an occasional freight.

Recently this little line’s existence was threatened. A few summers ago the government introduced buses between points served by the railway, but locals who take pride in their railroad surmised that if the buses succeeded, the trains would go.

The locals simply boycotted the buses and the buses disappeared. The trains roll on.

Remarkable Meals

At lunch we found the diner’s six tables laid with white linen. The first course was pea soup, followed by grilled lamb, peaches with custard and caramel, and coffee. It was a remarkable meal.

Of the settlements where we paused to slake the locomotives’ thirst, Leleque was my favorite. A row of golden poplars lined the tracks.

At the depot I recognized a telegraph, a nostalgic hallmark of railroading once essential to the movement of trains. Here in front of me was a sender and receiver that at any moment might clatter to life in Morse.

In late afternoon we detrained at El Maiten. There was considerable bustle on the platform as departure for Ingeniero Jacobacci neared.

Locomotives were traded, because the north end of the line is operated by Baldwin steamers--also 2-8-2s from 1922, though American built--while the Henschels work to the south. Now in charge, No. 5 whistled off with a heavy train of nine cars.

The train was fairly full and the car was alive with the murmur of voices.

In the second-class coach the feeling was dramatically different, more as if the passengers were camping out around the stove. Some sprawled on hard wooden seats, while others lay crosswise on the floor, trying to sleep--but blocking the aisle. Wood scraps littered the floor.

A Steep Climb

North from El Maiten lay hours of unbroken upgrade. After a water stop at Fitalancao, the tracks make a particularly steep, looping run up the hillside. As we doubled back, I saw the station and water tank far below.

With the afternoon sun comfortably warm on my face, I sat on the steps of the open platform and watched and listened as the Baldwin labored mightily to keep us moving. We slowed to walking speed.

The locomotive’s exhaust became so measured that it seemed to presage stalling. A black tower of smoke marked our passing as the fogonero (stoker) poured on the oil. High atop a ridge ahead, two gauchos on horseback were silhouetted against the sky. Still and remote, they watched.

The car jostled and rattled soothingly, growing dimmer inside as dusk fell and the last stain of pink-purple faded from the horizon. Amid the savory smells of meat cooking, we had a beer.

We were the only guests. Our asparagus soup, breaded steak, french fries, vino tinto , pudding and coffee cost 30 australes (about $4.25 U.S.), including the wine.

Walking back to our coach, we paused on the open platform and looked at a sky teeming with stars. A crescent moon hung to the west.

Ahead, billows of white smoke piled high as our Mikado soldiered on, leading its archaic train through the empty reaches of Patagonia.

Orange flashes from the firebox flitted across the landscape and illuminated the embracing wreaths of steam. The locomotive’s headlight cut a white swath as the train swung through curve after curve. Finally, we were driven inside by the cold.

For the last miles of the journey to Ingeniero Jacobacci the wooden car creaked and muted voices ebbed and flowed in the dim light.

We dozed, happy in the peace and warmth, in no rush to move on to the next stage of our journey.

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To ride the Esquel branch, contact Trains Unlimited Tours, 1430 Myers St., Suite H, Oroville, Calif. 95965, (916) 534-8555.

Two coming trips:

“Andes, Patagonia, and Pampa Rail Adventure,” a 22-day jaunt departing Sept. 17, includes the Esquel branch among its five chartered train rides.

“Best of Argentina/Paraguay Trains,” also 22 days, leaves Oct. 8 and is geared for the serious rail buff, with 17 train rides, 12 of them chartered. The Esquel branch is among them.

Trains Unlimited Tours also will help plan and book individual itineraries. It is possible, for instance, to fly from Buenos Aires to Esquel, then return by rail, or to include a visit to San Carlos de Bariloche, beautifully situated on mountain-girded Lago Nahuel Huapi, and travel from there to Esquel by bus.