The Kalka-Shimla railway

On Thursday, an hour’s taxi drive took us to the railway station at Kalka. We arrived in good time but enjoyed looking around the station and watching all the activity as our train was prepared. We were booked on the Himalayan Queen - a rather grand title for the service given what was sitting at the platform!

Shimla had been established as the summer capital of the Raj in the 1860s but it was not until 1898 that work commenced on constructing the railway, which was completed in 1903. It’s an incredible feat of engineering and hard labour, with 103 tunnels and 969 bridges, rising on 1:33 gradient to reach Shimla at over 2,000 metres of altitude. For the railway buffs amongst you, the train runs on tracks with a gauge of 2’ 6”.

The carriage was cramped with very upright seats and little leg-room. Most of the other people in it were British tourists and part of an organised tour. Despite the conditions and the 5 hour journey, we were glad we’d made the trip up by train. Overall, it was a very good experience (and our second Unesco world heritage site, after the Le Corbusier contributions to Chandigarh) but we will have a faster and more comfortable journey back down the mountain by car on departure from Shimla!