The Puffing Billy Train

This is the first in a series of articles by Gillian Johnston as she travels with AAT Kings.

The thought of catching a train, and hopping up on the windowsill and hanging your feet out the window in the fresh air as you travel through the forests, fern gullies and farmlands, sounds a unique experience. In the Dandenongs on the Puffing Billy tourist train you can do just that. Run by an exceptional group of volunteers, this Puffing Billy train takes you from Belgrave to Gembrook over 25km of track. Being a very famous Steam Heritage Railway, this train attracts tourists from Australia and overseas.

Arriving at the station at Belgrave the first thing you will notice is the extensive length of the train stretching 15 carriages and the full length of the station. Staff on the station all dressed in what appear to be authentic era costumes, turned out to be volunteers. Apparently there are hundreds of volunteers who arrange rosters, maintain the train and line, attend to supporting roles and even take on driving duties.

It was the volunteers who were busy organising the crowds onto the platform from inside the building. Then we were approached by the train conductor who was making sure the people were all managing to safely board the train.

It was fascinating to see the old era appearance of the station. There was the weighing machine so you could pay your money and get your body weight, and the old clock telling when the next train was going to arrive. The old wrought iron and wood bench chairs sat against the wall as well as some old wooden box style crates, one for rubbish and one marked for bottles and cans.

This train line actually use to stretch from Upper Ferntree Gully station to Gembrook and was opened in the 1900s to assist the large timber and farming community. The line went for 29km and stopped running after a landslide on the line between Selby and Menzies Creek in 1953. It finally closed in 1954.

The other section of the rail from Upper Ferntree Gully to Belgrave station closed in 1958. Through an agreement with Victoria Rail, this line had operated on weekends and holidays along with the rest of the track for three years since 1955. Although Victoria Rail was involved when the line reopened in 1962, the volunteers took a much larger responsibility checking tickets, manning stations, undertaking safety and track maintenance.

These exceptionally restored Puffing Billy locomotives are part of the only remaining narrow gauge engines and all are owned by the railway. Five of the engines have been restored and represent different eras of their working life. There are also some diesel locomotives which are used when there are fire bans or when insufficient steam trains are available. The gauge of the rail is 762mm or 2-foot 6 inches.

Today we were watching two beautifully restored Puffing Billy locomotives leading the train to Gembrook. The first class carriages actually came from Mount Lyell Railway in Tasmania, while the main carriage fleet were open sided carriages specially built for tourists between 1918 and 1919 by Victoria Rail. The new rail line now covered 25.1km and there are 11 stations along the line.

As the train started to move the children and young adults, full of excitement, took their places on the windowsill of the carriage.

The train passed over Trestle Bridge, through Selby, to Menzies Creek. There were great views of the Australian bush, towering tall mountain ash trees, eucalyptus and beautiful tree fern areas. Some of the bush undergrowth had been cleared nearer to the rail line indicating a fire management program was in place.

On reaching Menzies Creek everyone disembarked the train and we fought through crowds to get the last pictures of the steam train before returning to our AAT Kings bus. It was obvious there had been many people involved in restoring engines, carriages, stations, rail lines, and bringing the whole picture to such a special historical tourist attraction that all could be proud of. Here was a piece of Australia that was well worth remembering along with a very unique experience for all.

Have you taken a heritage train ride? Do you enjoy train travel? Tell us what is on your bucket list.