Riding the Rails on the Kingston Flyer

This must qualify as a “double whammy” for vintage train lovers.  Not only do we get to ride the rails on the famous Kingston Flyer, but we can park up overnight right outside the historic Kingston Station.  For our group of train lovers, it can’t get much better than that.

Camping outside Kingston Station

The settlement of Kingston is at the south end of Lake Wakitipu on glacial moraine, so we have a most wonderful outlook over the lake.

Lake Wapitipu

Gold was discovered here in 1860, causing the town to grow considerably, and the need for faster transport and communication brought about the construction of the Great Northern Railway from Invercargill to Kingston, opened in 1878.  The first passenger trains between Gore and Kingston travelled at a very speedy 60km per hour, and the train became known as the Kingston Flyer.  With the improvement of roading conditions this rail line, like many others, went into decline.  The Kingston Flyer now has new private owners and the tourist train runs from Kingston to Fairlight.

  All aboard

Clutching our tickets in our hot little hands, we climbed aboard and decided which carriage we would sit in.  The train was pulled by an AB778  Class Pacific locomotive, built in Addington Railway Workshops in 1925.  It weighs 86 tons, burns 760kg of coal and uses 3600 litres of water each return journey.  The carriages are restored to represent 1920s travel, and are constructed of teak, red pine and kauri, and have curved roofs of embossed plate. 

Our trip started in this carriage

You don’t often get upgraded on a train trip, but it was our lucky day.   The conductor announced that as there were not many passengers on this trip, she would unlock the doors to carriage A595, the last surviving example of  “Birdcage”carriages, built in 1898.  With five separate private compartments refurbished in black leather and an open walkway, it is the way the upper class colonials would have travelled in the 1890s.  However, we don’t look terribly upper class as we sit there clutching our Crunchy Bars in the first class compartment - we were reminiscing about the Crunchy Bar TV advertisement from years gone by which was filmed aboard the Kingston Flyer.

Crunchy Bars at the ready

Our very posh compartment

The train chugged along the 14km stretch of rail to Fairlight, and we sat back and enjoyed the scenery, stopping at Fairlight Station, the end of the line for our trip.

Fairlight Station

The engine was uncoupled and run around a three pronged siding set in a “Y” arrangement effectively turning the engine to face the other way. The engine is then reattached and we were ready for the return trip.

Ready for the Return Trip

On board once again, we sat back in our first class apartment for the return to Kingston.  A sign on the wall reminded us to behave while travelling on the train.

Sign on our compartment wall

Remember when postage prices were reasonable?

We had a great afternoon, and this train trip has long been anticipated by us all.