Since the 009 Forum has had very little life in it for a number of days, I decided to publish something that has been on the NGRM forum before. Quite possibly not every member of this forum has seen it, so I hope you won't mind me copying it.
Back in 1974 I was very lucky to visit West Sumatra. My ship came into Teluk Bayur near the city of Padang for almost a week of cargo operations. Just beyond the warehouses on the quay, there was a wonderful ex-colonial 3ft 6ins gauge railway still at work running steam traction. This was the terminus of a coal hauling railway which started 170kms away in the mining town of Sawahlunto. The railway had rack sections to traverse a densely wooded volcanic mountain range, at 1 in 14 to 1 in 20 gradients, and despite the closure of the huge coal storage installations at the harbour it still worked coal to a big cement factory on a branch to Indarung near Padang. A map of the railway can be viewed here: http://www.narrowgauge.nl/site/sumatra/west%20sumatra3e.jpg (http://www.narrowgauge.nl/site/sumatra/west%20sumatra3e.jpg)
The account of my 1974 visit can be read on my website on the following pages:
http://www.narrowgauge.nl/site/english/sumatra1.htm (http://www.narrowgauge.nl/site/english/sumatra1.htm)
http://www.narrowgauge.nl/site/english/sumatra2.htm (http://www.narrowgauge.nl/site/english/sumatra2.htm)
Several new finds have prompted me to do some research on this railway. I will show you a few items which I hope you will find interesting. Recently, a friend of mine came across an original Malay language book published by the former Netherlands Indies State Railways and Tramways, on the occasion of their 50th anniversary in 1925. This 'Boekoe Peringatan' or anniversary book contained several early 1920s photos of the same railway. One photo shows one of the 1913-built 0-8-2 rack tanks (State Railway no 101-103, later Indonesian class D18) pushing a 180-ton coal train up the hill from the Singkarak lake to the summit at Padang Panjang.
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.narrowgauge.nl%2Fsite%2Fsumatra%2Fss1925-1.jpg&hash=2a93d55d456e4d3e5e5b6c80aaa832e07b918884)
From Padang Panjang a descent to the coastal plain started, through the gorge of the Anai river, first crossing it by a huge steel arch viaduct, then worming its way down the rocky defile over a 1 in 14 rack section.
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.narrowgauge.nl%2Fsite%2Fsumatra%2Fss1925-5.jpg&hash=ffe62547ba5bf44ab1af8f2762f18538d4437d45)
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.narrowgauge.nl%2Fsite%2Fsumatra%2Fss1925-6.jpg&hash=b349f9a7f0a491ce8dc123ceb32d9697a5bb9839)
Finally, the railway ended up at Emmahaven (Teluk Bayur), where a huge coal loader stretched across the harbour, with two enormous coal storage bunkers just around the headland used to stockpile the coal until a ship came in.
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.narrowgauge.nl%2Fsite%2Fsumatra%2Fss1925-2.jpg&hash=702ae8895e89a4edf97f683b6693dd9fc79c71e3)
At the time of my visit in 1974, most of the old installations at the harbour were still untouched although clearly they had been abandoned years ago. I remember the coal loader and storage bunkers still in place.
Apart from the photos, I found a piece of 1929 film showing the harbour and the railway: http://www.narrowgauge.nl/video/sum99.wmv (http://www.narrowgauge.nl/video/sum99.wmv)
Most of the latter is filmed from a carriage pushed in front of the engine, but regrettably doesn't show a train except for a local train on shore in the distance, possibly drawn by a small 0-6-0. More photos are published in books by A.E.Durrant but these are obviously are still under copyright so I cannot reproduce them here.
After closure of the mines in 2003, most of the railway shut down, but it is being re-opened in stages. There is heavy cement traffic from Indarung to Teluk Bayur and on the coastal line there is a suburban service. Tourist trains are operating on the route from Padang Panjang along the Singkarak lake, and recent information is that the Anai gorge route is being re-opened.
Recent photos of the railway can be viewed on the Flickr photo stream of a local Indonesian photographer, Maulana Nur Achsani: http://www.flickr.com/groups/west-sumatra_railway/ (http://www.flickr.com/groups/west-sumatra_railway/)
Hope you like this account of a wonderful railway, the first hand experience of which provided some inspiration for my C&DR... ;)
A very interesting and comprehensive article and extremely well researched! Thanks for sharing this with members Ted.
Mick
Thanks, Mick. I decided to add a few of my photos from the web pages mentioned before. These were made in April, 1974.
Kessler-built 2-6-0T no. C3330 at work in Teluk Bayur station:
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.narrowgauge.nl%2Fsite%2Fsumatra%2Fsum61y.jpg&hash=04250614fa290f4cd3a4daa6f33c8f6ee9f20ea3)
The same loco shunting in the dockyard area at Teluk Bayur:
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.narrowgauge.nl%2Fsite%2Fsumatra%2Fsum59x.jpg&hash=0dbef92a8ecef5450aa2b40061877a153d6a25b9)
The derelict coal storage plant that once fed the huge coal loader over the harbour:
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.narrowgauge.nl%2Fsite%2Fsumatra%2Fsum53x.jpg&hash=2e8fbdd88d3579a63e733371cfbee27bf98280e4)
Heavy train departing from Teluk Bayur, headed by C3321 and banked by C3330:
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.narrowgauge.nl%2Fsite%2Fsumatra%2Fsum56x.jpg&hash=5719a174a6d851c1b0ab38deb4d95085fc8fe657)
An E10 rack loco banking a goods train towards the Anai gorge, in the paddy fields of the coastal plain:
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.narrowgauge.nl%2Fsite%2Fsumatra%2Fsum57x.jpg&hash=aed50f96c92685d94386a1aeb7505b8c57e627b4)
More photos and film clips can be viewed on my website pages:
http://www.narrowgauge.nl/site/english/sumatra1.htm (http://www.narrowgauge.nl/site/english/sumatra1.htm)
http://www.narrowgauge.nl/site/english/sumatra2.htm (http://www.narrowgauge.nl/site/english/sumatra2.htm)
Nice pics, interesting stuff.
John W ;D
Very interesting. Love the pics
Very interesting convergence