Original subtitles

Escape with us on an unforgettable 500 mile voyage...

The landscape now, it begins to change.

It just changes your mood.

..on a beautiful vintage train.

A journey back in time...

..to old British battlefields...

The area is referred to as the Acre of Massacre.

..and prehistoric cave paintings.

This figure is not completely human.

We relive train travel of a bygone era.

Ah it's the best...in the world.

TRAIN WHISTLE TOOTS

From ancient folklore to the modern day.

We drink for results, not for taste.

We meet the people who work and live along this special line.

If you can work and travel, I think that's the best combination.

Before arriving in Durban on the Indian Ocean.

This is no ordinary railway journey.

This is one of the most scenic train journeys in the world, South Africa.

Our journey starts in Pretoria at the beautiful Rovos station.

Home to a railway dynasty...

..the Vos family, who have been offering luxury train

travel since 1989.

When my dad was starting the business, he was absolutely

in love with steam locomotion.

It was what actually got him interested in trains to begin with.

Founder Rohan Vos had more than just a passion for steam locomotion.

He built a railway empire of over 450 staff that includes

the private train station and a depot full of old locomotives,

engines and carriages from different eras.

Thank you very much. Enjoy.

We're starting our journey with an 1800 horsepower diesel class

35 engine built in Australia in the 1980s.

This is our train.

It's 14 carriages long, but surprisingly, it's one

of the shorter trains here.

At Rovos Rail, luxury train travel is taken to another level.

The train is a five-star hotel on wheels.

This is going to be the passengers' home over the next three days.

Staff are getting the train ready for our journey

from Pretoria to Durban.

Deputy manager Khangwelo is making last-minute checks.

We've got different departments.

We've got a laundry, kitchen passage, the bar, dining rooms.

So you have to be hands-on in all departments

when you're on the train as deputy.

Rohan now wants us to leave at 9:00.

Thank you.

Train manager Adam is taking one last look to ensure everything

is ready in time for departure.

My deputy manager we'll do it as well, but I'm also giving it

a once over while I'm going through.

Listen, Rohan wants the train to leave at 9:00.

Everything looks perfect.

So we ready to roll with the guests.

As the lost suitcases are safely stowed away, it's time for everyone

to get on board.

Themba, Themba. Come in, please, Themba.

INDISTINCT RADIO SPEECH

Themba, there we go. Everyone's on board.

When you're ready, you can pull forward.

TRAIN HORN BLARES

Thank you.

We are now going to Durban, this is the beginning of our journey.

The first leg of the journey takes us out of Pretoria,

past Johannesburg, to Elandslaagte

to our first stop,

The Nambiti Private Game Reserve.

From there, we continue towards the majestic Drakensberg Mountains

to Ladysmith and the famous

Spion Kop battlefield.

Then onwards to explore Lions River Station and see

some ancient art.

Finally, we travel through the Valley of a Thousand Hills

to our destination, Durban, by the Indian Ocean.

Right outside Pretoria, we change to two class 18E electric engines

to join the main line that Rovos Rail shares with the

South African Railways Network.

These 1500 horsepower locos are built locally

by Transnet Engineering.

It's only 500 miles from Pretoria to Durban,

but no-one is in a hurry to get there too quickly.

Travelling on average at only 25mph,

this is not about speed.

Here we go. Thank you. You're very, very welcome.

It's about luxury train travel and enjoying time onboard.

Claire, from Staffordshire is travelling with her husband, Ian.

I'm looking forward to seeing a little bit more of South Africa.

I've never visited South Africa before.

I'm looking forward to the absolute luxury and pampering

that It am experiencing on the train, which is amazing.

All these beautiful carriages have a story to tell.

They were once part of old and forgotten trains, often found

on scrap yards around the world and shipped to Pretoria,

where they are painstakingly restored at the Rovos depot.

Dedication and ingenuity go hand-in-hand at the workshops.

Nothing goes to waste at Rovos HQ.

Don't throw things away. Don't cut things up.

You know, if you don't have immediate use for it, put

it under a shed somewhere

and someone like us some way will come across it and bring it

back to life and really get people to enjoy it.

Joe has been working at Rovos Rail for over 30 years.

This is a 1924 dining car originally

and it was a 44-seater dining car.

We converted it into an observation car.

We took that wall, we put it in

so that we can have an open-air balcony.

The workshops at Rovos depot are a train aficionado's heaven.

250 highly-trained staff lovingly restore the vintage

carriages and engines.

Among the fleet are four steam locomotives, named

after the children of Rohan Vos.

We have some of the most experienced

steam locomotive technicians working with us.

She's looking like she needs a real Polish.

Tiffany, named after the youngest daughter, is currently getting

a complete makeover.

She is one of the oldest working mainline locos in the world.

The class 6 number 439 was built by Dubs and CO

Glasgow Locomotive Works in 1893.

It just makes me feel quite nostalgic seeing my name there.

I mean, as children, my dad would christen the locomotives.

Just brings back a lot of memories of being a kid

growing up in this crazy world of railways.

Our train has travelled past the outskirts of Johannesburg

and is now heading south.

We take in the stunning scenery as we move into the coastal

province of KwaZulu-Natal.

The landscape, now it begins to change.

Even the environment you can see starts to get more greener.

A lot of mountains, it just changes in woods.

It's time to sit back, relax and enjoy the magnificent views

for the next 250 miles,

till our first main stop.

The magnificent Nambiti Private Game Reserve,

where we'll come face-to-face with nature's giants.

We've got a big bull elephant here.

So you've got to give them a lot of respect.

We're on a luxurious railway journey across South Africa,

from Pretoria to Durban.

Travelling through the beautiful KwaZulu Natal province, a region

of gorgeous grasslands and rich in wildlife.

Literally around the corner and we're there. Yay.

It's good, it's a good time.

The train stops at a tiny rural station, Elandslaagte,

on the outskirts of Nambiti Private Game Reserve.

Should be going through a game reserve viewing

all these wonderful, magnificent creatures, which is part of the

reason we came to South Africa.

The reserve spreads over 26,000 acres

and is home to over 40 species of game living in the wild.

While the passengers head off on their wildlife safari

armed with cameras, we join rangers Brett and Dave on a

more serious mission - protecting

one of the most endangered animals in the world, the rhino

Poaching at the moment,

from the stats from last year,

there's over a thousand rhinos have died in South Africa.

So it is a very, very big problem at the moment and I can't see

it getting any better. It's quick money, it's good money.

Rhinos are being hunted for their valuable horns, estimated

to be worth up to $65,000 a kilo on the black market.

They might be up there, on the dead-end road up there.

The black rhino is particularly vulnerable.

With fewer than 6,000 remaining in the wild and 1,000 killed

in South Africa in a year,

they have been driven to near extinction.

THUNDER RUMBLES

There's a big storm brewing behind us at the moment.

They're normally quite quick, but

they've got some serious downpour when they do come past.

As the rain clears, more and more animals come out to feast

on the lush grasslands.

We've got a big bull elephant here.

Absolutely beautiful creatures.

You can see this guy's lost both his tusks. They often break

them off for fighting or just pushing over things.

When you're that size, you know,

it's fun to push things over, I suppose. They are big animals

and that can cause a lot of damage if they want to,

so you've to give them a lot of respect.

Hopefully we can find the rhino. None yet, but we'll get there.

Nambiti's anti-poaching unit

undergoes para military-style training

and these rangers are at the forefront of the poaching war.

HE SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY

They went inside... Seems like they were sleeping.

The Rangers spot a female rhino and her calf in the distance.

They seem to be doing fine.

I think if we just hang back a little bit.

Black rhino are generally much more aggressive than white rhino.

Black rhinos can be very hostile,

especially a female looking after her calf.

It's going to charge us.

Just watch out. Watch out.

Quickly.

Dave then spots another threat.

Something moved.

And this this big black rhino bull,

he's clearly not very happy with us being here. They've paired up

by the look of things. Maybe we

interrupted in a romantic getaway or something here.

Which is why he might be very upset with us.

No-one wants to cramp this rhino's style.

The rangers go to great lengths to protect him

and the other rhinos' safety.

This includes regularly dehorning

the animals, making them worthless to poachers.

To keep them safe the anti-poaching unit monitor their rhino population

24 hours a day, every day of the year.

At our train, as the sun sets, the staff have refreshments

for the returning guests.

Hope you enjoyed it. Thank you ever so much.

That was quite nice.

We really enjoyed it.

That was really good.

THEY CHATTER

It is Gentleman Jack whisky.

Back in the luxury of the train,

the passengers get dressed up for post-safari fancy cocktails.

I think Ian thinks he's James Bond cos he's got a vodka martini.

Well, Miss Moneypenny, I have a vodka martini. Shaken, not stirred.

LAUGHTER

CHATTER

It's the next morning.

Time to continue our journey and leave Nambiti behind.

From Elandslaagte our train travels

along the edge of Nambiti towards

Spion Kop outside Ladysmith,

and charges on south through

historic battlegrounds,

we take respite at a vineyard

in the Drakensberg Mountains

and travel through the lush

African veldt, before arriving

in Estcourt.

Our train travels along the same route

that was a crucial supply line for British troops on the front line

during the Second Boer War,

which was fought between the British Empire and two Boer states.

We are heading for Spion Kop outside Ladysmith.

The site of one of the bloodiest battles of the war.

A place that historian Raymond Heron knows well.

The area we're moving into now

is referred to in the history books as the Acre of Massacre.

All that is left today to remind us is a memorial with the remnants

of the trenches filled with the stones that covered the dead.

It was on January 24th, 1900, the day of one of the biggest military

blunders in British history.

The British climbed the mountain at ten o'clock on the night before,

and they dig trenches in the worst possible position.

This is where the British were.

There was a very heavy mist, and at around eight o'clock

that morning, the mist on the mountains started to lift.

Little did the soldiers realise they were digging their own graves.

As the mist lifted, they found themselves surrounded by Boers

who were lying in wait on the lower terrain.

The Boers were incredibly good shots.

They could shoot wild animals over a distance of 1,000 yards

with an open sight.

So for the first time in world warfare, you've got snipers.

The British were exposed on the top of the hill.

There was nowhere to hide.

The Boers, who had an intimate knowledge of this terrain,

over in their position had their backs to the sun

and they opened a deadly fire from their position

onto those positions.

And we know that over 70 of the British soldiers here were shot

through the right temple, suggesting they were turning their heads away

from the rising sun and getting shot.

You could hear the shots, but you don't know where

they're coming from - it's a huge advantage.

The conditions were horrendous.

By midday, it was over 40 degrees.

The British had run out of water.

There was no shelter.

And the Boer artillery was firing up to seven rounds

of shells per minute.

Most of the men who fell on that fateful day were buried

as unknown soldiers at Spion Kop.

It remains the smallest piece of ground on which more men

lost their lives in a single battle

than any battle fought anywhere in the world.

We know that the Boers lost 58 men in this battle.

The British lost in excess of 700.

Astonishingly, on the day of the battle, two titans of history

had been up on Spion Kop.

They both returned alive.

Winston Churchill was in South Africa as a war correspondent.

Mahatma Gandhi came to South Africa to fight for Indian rights.

Had a stray bullet hit any one of the two,

you can ask yourself what you think might have happened to the course

of world history.

Mahatma Gandhi was here as a stretcher bearer.

He was heard to say that he could see what the human race was capable

of doing to one another,

but he needed to know in the name of what?

The brave men who fought here will never be forgotten.

In Britain, to commemorate the many Liverpudlians who fell here,

Liverpool Football Club named their famous Kop stand

at Anfield after the battle.

Our train is travelling

along the edge of the stunning Drakensberg Mountains.

As we soak up the changing African landscape, the guests enjoy

a fine lunch.

All the food is locally sourced,

as are the wines served by wine waiter, Ethan.

May I top you up on some wine, sir?

Pinot Noir.

Every single wine on the train is from South Africa,

mostly Western Cape area.

Would you like a top-up on wine, sir? Yes, please.

South Africa is the ninth largest wine producer in the world.

Most vineyards are located around coastal regions in the south,

but high up here in the central Drakensberg there is

an up and coming estate rewriting the wine map of South Africa.

Mauritz bravely started growing vines here in 2007 and is now

enjoying its success.

That is our first, first cuttings of the season.

We've tasted the sugars, they are right up there where we want them

and that'll turn into a nice alcohol wine of about 13.5, 14% alcohol.

Strong enough for our South Africans to drink.

We always like a strong alcohol wine

cos we drink for results, not for taste.

Mauritz is far too modest.

His wines have already won several prestigious awards, and that's

despite growing his vines in a challenging climate.

We get severe thunderstorms, we get severe hail.

Summer rainfall. Every time

it rains, it dilutes the sugar in the grape.

So that dilutes the alcohol in your wine.

The site you can see the hail netting.

We put it up on one side because we normally get our hail

from the southern side.

The winery is currently the only wine estate in the central

Drakensberg Mountains.

Mm, pretty close. I think that's just about there.

Mauritz could be the one to open the area up to more wine growers

who can take advantage of the rich soils.

I think the people who drive past here thought I was mad.

I think a lot of people still think I'm mad, but we just keep on

chipping away and it's starting to get the right returns.

The grapes are growing, we are making wines.

We've received a couple of awards.

So it's all getting together and getting better and better.

It's still early days for wine growers in this area, but the hard

work is slowly starting to pay off.

I really like sitting down here and have a glass of wine,

mostly on my own.

This is, for me, the peaceful time of the day.

This is your reward for the day's work.

We've now travelled 350 miles over two days through the great

grasslands of South Africa.

Our next stop is Estcourt, where we will be spending the night.

And after a good night's sleep...

..tomorrow morning, we will head into the Drakensberg Mountains

to explore the ancient rock art of the San people.

The best paintings, the most wonderful eland

that you're going to see in the Drakensberg.

We're on a South African adventure with Rovos Rail.

It's early morning and we're

travelling past the Wagendrift Dam...

..as our train heads south towards the Indian Ocean.

While the passengers tuck into breakfast.. Yes, please.

..the train keeping team

is at hand to make the beds and clean the luxurious suites.

We have to change the sheets every morning.

We only get 15 minutes.

Folding the towels sometimes take a lot of time

because you must fold it in the standard way.

This is so much pressure!

She's kidding. She'll be fine.

SHE CHUCKLES

You'll never forget the toilet roll.

It's very much learning by doing.

The language of the towels.

How the towels are folded, which way they go.

Every room has a little secret to it, but the more I do it,

the more I'll understand.

I mostly want to work on the train because I need to see

more of my country.

Sometimes you don't get to travel as much, and if you can work

and travel, I think that's the best combination.

I was happy to find out that I don't have motion sickness!

It would have been an interesting adventure.

It's a job well done.

All suites are finished in time.

From Estcourt, our train travels

to the quirky station

of Lions River,

We'll then pass by the winding of

the Umgeni River and the mysterious

Howick Waterfalls, before we enter

the Valley of a Thousand Hills.

TRAIN WHISTLE TOOTS

The train glides across the

heartlands of the KwaZulu Natal province.

A land of rich cultural heritage.

The earliest hunter-gatherers who lived in South Africa

were the San People.

Little is known about the San, but

high up in the Drakensberg Mountains,

ancient rock paintings give us clues

about their way of life and spiritual beliefs.

Only a few people know where

the secret sites of San rock art are located.

One of them is anthropology professor, Jeremy Hollmann.

Right. Well, there we are, up there is the rock art site.

It's a bit of a scramble, the last bit, but it's worth it.

The spectacular surroundings were an inspiration

to ancient artists.

OK, we're here now.

The best paintings and the most wonderful eland

that you're going to see in the Drakensberg.

The eland is the largest of all antelopes.

As we walk along here and you look to the rocks, you'll see

that there are paintings dotted all over the surfaces here.

And then we come to a gem like this,

the dying eland - the image that

gave us a breakthrough into understanding the Bushman beliefs

and their reasons for making the rock paintings.

Well, what's really interesting about this figure

is not completely human.

So what we're seeing here is a twinning of human and eland.

And this is a central idea in Bushmen religion.

Jeremy has been studying every detail of these paintings

and the meaning behind them for years.

Obviously, one of the things we want to know when we look at things

like this is how old are the paintings?

Some dating work carried out in the mountains elsewhere,

we're getting dates of between two and 3,000 years before the present.

So they're pretty old.

There's no weathering that happens here.

There's no sun that comes on the painting. There's no water.

And that's why they've lasted so long.

And it's all out here in this amazing landscape.

Below in the valley, our train continues to travel in the foothills

of the stunning Drakensberg Mountains.

Khangwelo is looking forward

to arriving at our next stop - Lions River.

I love that place.

It's not far from the Nelson Mandela Capture Site.

That's where Nelson Mandela was arrested.

It brings me closer to my history.

Our train pulls into Lions River,

a quaint little station in the

middle of the KwaZulu Natal Midlands.

It's hard to believe that this was

once a major hub of commercial activity.

From here, cattle were transported

by train to other parts of South Africa.

But today, only the old rickety station remains.

Son of a local cattle farmer, Glen grew up around here.

There used to be about 110 trains passing through here a day.

So just a hive of activity and a community place

where you could actually hop on the

train and go to your next destination.

In some ways, not much has changed here, but the usage has

sort of dropped dramatically.

Now you're sort of looking at around ten to 15 trains a day,

and they're mainly all freight trains.

In 1962 South Africa's most famous son, Nelson Mandela, came

through Lions River.

Outside here is a stunning old building.

It's actually sort of where Mandela had his last drink

before he got captured.

It used to be an old general store of sorts, but the place is sort of

oozing with this history and character.

And it's just been kept that way.

It's sort of overgrown since,

but it's all still there in the bones of Lions River.

The sleepy village is currently undergoing a rejuvenation process.

A few coffee houses and new shops are popping up.

in 2018 Glen opened The Platform,

located inside one of the old railway buildings.

For us The Platform here there is an immense creative community.

There's a tonne of artists that sort of live out here in the countryside,

and this is sort of a place for us to showcase

all of their beautiful works.

And the creativity didn't stop

when it came to building a new loo for the customers.

Around the corner here we've got a cattle crush,

but now we've sort of converted it into a toilet.

And what's really cool about the

toilet is it's got a nice one-way glass to it.

So you can actually see the goats,

or whatever's passing by on the train track at the time.

It's a brief stop for Khangwelo too, as she explores the curio art shop.

They're just beautiful. They've got these unique characters.

I mean, look at that one.

Is it a cow or a buffalo, with boobs and the red stilettos?

They're just unique. They're nice.

she laughs

We are ready to leave and continue our journey.

But one of the passengers has gone missing.

He's disappeared off again,

taking even more photographs of trains, et cetera.

So I'm just here now worried that the train may leaving behind,

which is a mixed blessing.

With all the passengers finally back on board...

THEY CHATTER

..our train pulls out of Lions River.

THEY LAUGH

Shortly after Lions River, we cross another river, the Umgeni.

This seemingly small waterway, continues south

towards the tiny town of Howick.

This is where the Umgeni River

spectacularly falls 95 metres

over a cliff on its way

to the Indian Ocean.

The pool below the cascade is a sacred site for the local Zulu.

According to ancient folklore,

this is where the almighty Inkanyamba lives.

A snake-like creature.

Elliot is a sangoma - a medicine man and spiritual healer

who practises the traditions of his Zulu ancestors.

Only sangomas can communicate with the Inkanyamba.

The encounter between a sangoma and the Inkanyamba

is like an out-of-body experience.

Elliot believes the spirit of his ancestors lives submerged

underwater in the pool below Howick Falls.

Elliot's latest encounter with the spiritual powers

of the Inkanyamba leaves him revitalised.

We're 400 miles into our journey and are travelling

through the stunning Valley of a Thousand Hills.

As our train continues south to Durban, we are going to take

a nostalgic trip from Kloof to Inchanga

on one of South Africa's oldest and steepest railway lines,

on the Umgeni steam train.

Ah, it's the best train in the world.

Only privileged people like us can pull this...

TRAIN WHISTLE TOOTS

It's the final day of our three-day train journey

from Pretoria to Durban.

We're travelling through the lush Zulu lands of the breathtaking

Valley of a Thousand Hills.

As our luxury train glides through this beautiful landscape,

we are taking a brief detour to get onboard a much older train.

A beloved relic kept alive by a small team

of steam locomotion enthusiasts.

This is the Umgeni Steam Railway.

On the last Sunday of each month, a group of dedicated volunteers run

the service from Kloof to Inchanga.

Among them, in charge of the engine, is Ryan.

We're currently standing aboard a 19 Class locomotive.

It's an ex-South African Railways engine, built in 1938 in Germany,

still going strong.

The short journey from Kloof to Inchanga is only 15 miles.

We have a mountain to climb.

We actually have to shovel a lot of coal, takes about a tonne

of coal each way.

We work hard, as you can see.

We all do it because we are passionate about steam, and

the survival and the heritage, so that the future generations

can enjoy what we enjoy here.

Hey, birthday boy! Hello!

I like people, I like trains so I enjoy doing it.

We are all volunteers and for that we're just give thanks

for the privilege of being able to do it.

First things first. Good morning, everyone.

And welcome aboard. THEY WHOOP

So while everyone is sitting in the train waiting to go, I am

shovelling my butt off, getting the engine ready.

TRAIN WHISTLE TOOTS

WHISTLE TOOTS

..clear, all set for mainline.

TRAIN WHISTLE TOOTS

If I put my hand here I should get burnt.

If I can hold it there, the fire is not hot enough and we're not

going to go anywhere.

I need to keep this needle as close to this mark as I can for optimum

power and steam, bearing in mind

we need to keep water in these glasses at all times.

Ah, it's the best...in the world.

Only privileged people like us can pull this.

TRAIN WHISTLE TOOTS

Yeah, very unique sound.

TRAIN WHISTLE TOOTS

The train, Wesley, travels through the beautiful

Valley of a Thousand Hills following the Old Natal Main Line

that was completed in 1880.

TRAIN WHISTLE TOOTS

Along some stretches of the narrow gauge track, the gradient is 10%.

That's a lot of work for this old locomotive and also

for the men in the cab.

Lots of steam. Working hard.

Wesley also travels through one of South Africa's oldest tunnels.

SHRIEKING

On the train, everybody is enjoying the ride.

It's awesome seeing the history of the railways being preserved.

We're amazed that it's volunteers

that are actually keeping this whole thing going.

After 50 minutes, our steam train is approaching Inchanga.

Little ones have been loving it. Absolutely brilliant.

Now we've levelled off. We're coming to the station.

So I won't be putting any more coal for a while.

Today was the best day, pretty much nearly for my life.

As Wesley the steam loco pulls into Inchanga...

..back on our vintage train,

we are approaching our final destination, too.

The last stop on our journey is Durban by the Indian Ocean.

Thanks very much. And once again,

for myself and all of the crew, it's been lovely having you.

Hopefully we'll have you back in the future, thank you.

The passengers say their farewells.

Our trip has come to an end.

On our train adventure from Pretoria to Durban, we travelled through lush

grasslands and passed spectacular mountains.

We got a taste of the rich history, the wonderful wildlife

and the stunning beauty of South Africa.

All from the comfort of this extraordinary train.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media