La Trochita, in English known as the Old Patagonian Express, is a narrow gauge railway in Patagonia, Argentina using steam locomotives. It was originally 402 km in length running between Esquel, Chubut and Ingeniero Jacobacci, Río Negro, and part of a wider planned network of railways in southern Argentina. It now operates as a heritage railway between Esquel and El Maitén. It was made internationally famous by the 1978 Paul Theroux book The Old Patagonian Express and is one of the southernmost functioning railways in the world. In orange the area most commonly defined as Patagonia. ... Rail gauge is the distance between two rails of a railroad. ... A millimetre (American spelling: millimeter, symbol mm) is an SI unit of length that is equal to one thousandth of a metre. ... A foot (plural: feet; symbol or abbreviation: ft or, sometimes, ′ – a prime) is a unit of length, in a number of different systems, including English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ... Mid-19th century tool for converting between different standards of the inch An inch is an Imperial and U.S. customary unit of length. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Narrow-gauge railways are railroads (railways) with track spaced at less than the standard gauge of 4 ft 8 in (1. ... In orange the area most commonly defined as Patagonia. ... Scheme of steam locomotive. ... A view of a lake near Esquel. ... Chubut is a province in the southern part of Argentina, that lies between the 42nd Parallel South (forming the border with the Río Negro Province) and 46th Parallel South (bordering Santa Cruz Province), the Andes range separating Argentina from Chile, and the Atlantic ocean. ... Río Negro is a province of Argentina, located at the northern edge of Patagonia. ... A scene on a heritage railway. ... Paul Edward Theroux (born April 10, 1941) is an American travel writer and novelist, whose best known work is The Great Railway Bazaar (1975), a travelogue about a trip he made by train from Great Britain through Europe and South Asia, then South-East Asia, up through East Asia, as...

History

Plans

In 1908, the Government of Argentina planned a network of railways across Patagonia. Two main lines would join San Carlos de Bariloche in the central Andes with the sea ports of San Antonio Este on the Atlantic coast to the east, and Puerto Deseado on the coast to the south east. Branches were to be built to connect the mainline with Buenos Aires Lake (connecting at Colonia Las Heras) and Comodoro Rivadavia (connecting at Colonia Sarmiento). Colonia 16 de Octubre - the Esquel and Trevelin area - would be connected via a branch line to Ingeniero Jacobacci. The whole network would connect to Buenos Aires via San Antonio Este. Government After years of post-World War II instability, Argentina is today a fully functioning democracy. ... San Carlos de Bariloche is a city in the province of Río Negro, Argentina, situated on the foothills of the Andes, surrounded by lakes (Nahuel Huapi, Gutiérrez Lake, Moreno Lake and Mascardi Lake) and mountains (Tronador, Cerro Catedral, Cerro López). ... The Andes form the longest mountain chain in the world. ... Look up Atlantic Ocean in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Puerto Deseado, originally called Port Desire, is a fishing port in Patagonia in the Santa Cruz Province of Argentina on the estuary of the Río Deseado, located at 47°22′S 63°49′W. It was named Port Desire by the privateer Thomas Cavendish in 1586 after the name... Comodoro Rivadavia is a city in the Patagonian province of Chubut in southern Argentina, located on the Gulf of San Jorge, an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, at the foot of the Cerro Chenque mountain. ... Trevelin is a town in Chubut Province, Argentina. ...

The project ran out of steam following ministerial changes and the start of World War I which affected the economy of Argentina and the input of technology and investment required from Europe. The northern main line from the coast reached Ingeniero Jacobacci in 1916. 282 km of the southern main line from Deseado to Las Heras, and the 197 km branch line from Comodoro Rivadavia to Sarmiento were laid, but never connected with each other or the northern network. After 1916, the only further work was the completion of the link from Jacobacci to Bariloche, finished in 1934. Combatants Allied Powers: British Empire France Italy Russia United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary Bulgaria Germany Ottoman Empire Commanders Ferdinand Foch Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna Armando Diaz Nicholas II Aleksei Brusilov Herbert Henry Asquith Douglas Haig John Jellicoe Woodrow Wilson John Pershing Wilhelm II Paul... Argentina benefits from rich natural resources, a highly literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base. ... World map showing Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is one of the seven traditional continents of the Earth. ...

The Esquel line

The exception was the Esquel line. After the end of World War I, narrow gauge track and facilities were plentiful and cheaper, given their extensive use at the front for supplies and troop movement. 0.6 m Decauville railroads were used extensively in Buenos Aires Province in rural areas and to carry freight. For passenger services, locomotives for 0.75 m track were readily available and it was decided to pursue this cheaper option. In 1921 it was agreed to lay down the Jacobacci-Esquel line, and also to connect it with the existing private 1 m-gauge railway in the Chubut Valley from Dolavon to Puerto Madryn. This would be the Patagonian Light Railways Network. Name plate of the Decauville company Paul Decauville (1846-1922) was a French pioneer in light railways. ... The Buenos Aires province (IPA: , Spanish: Provincia de Buenos Aires) is the wealthiest and most populated province of Argentina. ... The Chubut valley in Patagonia, Argentina forms the heart of the Chubut Province, the third largest province of Argentina. ... Dolavon is a small town in Chubut Province in Patagonia, Argentina. ... Puerto Madryn (in Welsh, Porth Madryn) is a city in the province of Chubut in the Argentine Patagonia. ...

Belgian coaches and freight wagons were ordered in 1922, plus fifty locomotives from German company Henschel & Sohn. Later 25 more locomotives were bought from the Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia. Henschel & Son (Henschel & Sohn) was German company, situated in Kassel. ... Baldwin Locomotive Works builders plate, 1922 The Baldwin Locomotive Works was an American builder of railroad locomotives. ... Nickname: City of Brotherly Love, Philly, the City That Loves You Back, the Quaker City, The Birthplace of America Motto: Philadelphia maneto - Let brotherly love continue Location in Pennsylvania Coordinates: Country United States State Pennsylvania County Philadelphia Founded October 27, 1682 Incorporated October 25, 1701 Mayor John F. Street (D...

The first part of the project was to lay a third rail inside the existing tracks at Jacobacci and the Chubut Valley so that they could be used by the narrow gauge vehicles. New tracks were laid to extend the Chubut Valley line from Trelew to Rawson at the coast and westwards to Las Plumas. After floods destroyed much of the line in 1931-32, work began again in 1934 with new plans, with a 105 m-long bridge and a 110 m-long tunnel to be built. 1,000 labourers worked in the harsh Patagonian environment, many later settling. Trelew is a city in the province of Chubut, in the Argentine Patagonia, with a population of about 89,000 as per the 2001 census [INDEC]. The city has a small commercial center, several neighborhoods, and some villas miseria (shanty towns), in which the houses are made of tin metal... Rawson is the name of two towns in the United States: Rawson, North Dakota Rawson, Ohio Rawson is the name of the capital of Chubut Province in Argentina Rawson, Chubut, Argentina This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same...

Trains began to run on the completed parts of the line in 1935. In 1941 the line reached El Maitén, where maintenance facilities were built. The first train to Esquel entered the city on May 25, 1941. However, until 1950 it was a freight-only service. The first passenger service launched in 1950 and connected Esquel with Buenos Aires (arriving at Constitución station), changing trains at Jacobacci. Passengers would occupy loose wooden benches around a stove which could be used for light cooking and above all to prepare maté and keep warm. The bends of the line in the Andean foothills and the slow speed of the network allowed passengers to walk alongside the train on certain sections along the 14 hour journey. May 25 is the 145th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (146th in leap years). ... This article is about the year. ... Constitución is a train station in Buenos Aires, Argentina. ... Binomial name Ilex paraguariensis A. St. ... Other uses: Foothills are geographically defined as gradual increases in elevated land at the base of a mountain range. ...

The service was much used for freight through the 1960s and 1970s, contributing to the development of the area, especially the construction of the dam on the Futaleufú River and the growth of El Maitén thanks to the locomotive maintenance operation. The Futaleufú River is a river fed by the lakes in the Los Alerces National Park in Chubut Province, Argentina, crossing the Andes Mountains into Chile and opening into the Yelco Lake. ...

Decline

In 1961, the line at the lower Chubut valley between Puerto Madryn and Las Plumas was closed, never having been connected with the Esquel or Bariloche lines. In the 1970s the two isolated lines to the south also shut down. La Trochita also began to decline, due to the improvement of the road network and of trucks and buses, and the difficulties of maintaining a railway so far from the country's capital and the global rail industry. However over the same period, Patagonia had been 'discovered' by tourists and La Trochita was something of a backpacker highlight. Theroux's book brought it to wider attention and gave the railway a name - The Old Patagonian Express - which highlighted its timeless appeal both to Argentine nostalgics and tourists. Backpacker may refer to: Look up backpacker in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Nevertheless, the line was not profitable. Given the communities it served, private investors were not interested in making necessary investment. In 1992, under the liberal economic practices of the central government, it was decided to close the line. However there was a national and even an international outcry at the decision to close a line which had become emblematic of a bygone age and of that region. The two provincial governments came together to keep the line open.

The Trochita today

The line runs as of 2006 between Esquel and El Maitén, although there are plans to rehabilitate the line's entire length to Ingeniero Jacobacci ^[1].

The 1922 locomotives have always had to make frequent stops due to their high use of water. There are eight stops:

• Esquel
• Nahuel Pan station
• La Cancha station
• Mayoco station
• Lepá station
• Leleque station
• Ing. B J Thomae station (not full station)
• El Maitén

The whole journey takes almost seven hours, although there are services offering a trip just to the first station and back from each end. Charter services offer on-board catering and other services and are hoped to be used for the Jacobacci link. As of 2006, tickets for the whole journey were 80 Argentine pesos, with the short excursion costing AR$ 25. The Argentine peso (originally established as the nuevo peso argentino or peso convertible) is the currency of Argentina. ...

Carlos Kmet is the Mechanical Area Coordinator, and Locomotive and Rolling Stock Maintenance and Repairs Manager of the line. His job to maintain the original 1922 locomotives is increasingly difficult, due to the lack of parts and expertise, and the remoteness of his base in El Maitén. This leads to frequent shut-downs of the service.

The Government of Argentina declared La Trochita as a National Historic Monument in 1999 ^[2]. Government After years of post-World War II instability, Argentina is today a fully functioning democracy. ...

References

1. ^ Ingeniero Jacobacci guide, Patagonia Central, accessed 2006-08-05
2. ^ 'El Kavanagh, entre los protegidos', Clarín, 1999-04-23 (Spanish)

2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... August 5 is the 217th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (218th in leap years), with 148 days remaining. ... Clarín is a major newspaper in Argentina, founded by Roberto Noble on August 28, 1945. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... April 23 is the 113th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (114th in leap years). ...

External links

• Official site