Epic Train Journeys

[narrator] This is the Ghan, one of Australia's most iconic trains.

It travels through some of the driest, hottest, and most spectacular landscapes in the world.

For engineers keeping this luxury train running safely, it's a tough, round-the-clock job.

The Ghan's route crosses the entire continent, from Adelaide in the south, to Darwin in the north, two and a half days each way.

Filmed from above, this series showcases some of the most incredible railways on Earth.

We'll gain a unique aerial insight into these remarkable trains and the extraordinary landscapes they pass through... ...revealing the technology that built them and the dedicated people who keep them running.

We'll uncover the culture, the history, and the engineering that makes these truly Epic Train Journeys From Above.

[train whistle blows] The Ghan, one of the longest passenger trains in the world, is preparing to leave on an epic journey from the south to the north of Australia.

The country is vast, almost eight million square kilometers and the train will cover nearly 3,000 kilometers.

With its size comes variety, desert, tropical forest, rich grassland, along with truly unique wildlife.

And Australia's geology is remarkable, because little has changed in 4.4 billion years.

Adelaide, in Australia's deep south, is the Ghan's starting point and home base.

Home of the Kaurna people, the city has become the thriving wine capital of Australia, and an important center for the country's opal trade.

[clanking] [man] We're currently locking down the train, so in a few minutes' time we will be leaving Adelaide Parklands Terminal, on our way to Darwin.

[buzz of conversation] Good afternoon, everyone.

How are you doing?

-[woman] Hello!

-You're all looking well.

Bang on time at 12.15, the Ghan sets off, at the start of its two-and-a-half-day journey.

Today, there are 29 carriages, although at times, it has pulled up to 44 carriages, making it over a kilometer long.

On its way, it winds past some of colonial Australia's earliest history.

This is the original Adelaide Jail, opened in 1841, just five years after the colony was founded.

Close to the jail, the train crosses the river that was the site of the area's earliest European settlement.

[tranquil music] The Ghan's always headed by two locomotives, usually the iconic Red Ghan engines.

The journey takes the train into areas so remote and so arid that the second engine's a spare in case the first breaks down.

Today, it's a dark blue Pacific National loco.

To cover the whole length of the Ghan from the air, we filmed several journeys, each with different sets of locomotives.

On board, engineer Aaron Bennett has a key job.

He's one of two technicians on the Ghan.

Parts of the track in the vast Australian Outback are more than 100 kilometers from any human habitation, so they can't rely on outside help when things go wrong.

Once a train leaves the station, it's all on us to repair the train.

We've got a lot of stuff that fails over time, and we have drawings for everything on the train as well.

So, yeah, if we're not sure how to fix it, then yeah, we can look into the manuals and be able to work it out as we go.

The two power cars generate all the electricity for the air conditioning, lighting, and the fridges and cookers in the kitchens.

As you can tell, it's very loud, very, very hot.

Uh, dusty, dirty!

We've got three Mercedes diesels in here.

We have two running at the same time, but we've also got one for redundancy.

The standby generator can be brought online if another fails.

The Ghan is Australia's equivalent of the Orient Express in Europe, a luxury train.

Today, there are 30 staff looking after 176 passengers.

[group] Cheers!

[glasses clink, laughter] Preparations for each journey begin as soon as the southbound train from Darwin returns from its 3,000-kilometer marathon trip through the Outback, to its base here in Adelaide.

The trains take a battering on every journey, but the Ghan's got to be ready to depart again in under 48 hours.

So a ten-person team has to find every fault that's developed on the carriages and fix them all.

Primary suspension springs, secondary suspension springs are all in one piece.

Vertical and horizontal shock absorbers not leaking oil.

The train passes through trackside sonic detectors which pick up any anomalies from the wheels and bearings.

A problem's been spotted.

When the train drives past the readers, um, it, it listens out for certain, um, noises and pitches, and tells you if there's a possible bearing problem.

So, we just start by refreshing the grease.

Lots of moving components.

You've gotta check for wear.

Make sure your split pins haven't fallen out.

On this car, the team has spotted a couple more issues.

The brake pads need changing.

That's the old one worn out, or pretty close to worn out, and that's the new one there.

And there's a water leak.

Each carriage needs 3,000 liters of water on a trip.

In such hot, dry conditions, every drop counts, so the leak's got to be traced and fixed.

So what we've found here is this ball valve that shuts off and holds the pressure for the water system, and it's just not quite closing off.

You've got nine rooms with nine showers and hand basins and toilets flushing and all sorts so, um, they need all the water they can get.

It's not just the underside that needs attention.

On board, the interiors need to be checked for wear and tear.

[Troy] That's good.

Again, in the shower areas, things tend to come loose on a train that don't come loose in a hotel.

[Dave] I'm definitely getting a bad run this week!

It's been a punishing journey.

Right through the train, the team is finding they're having to change many more brake pads than usual.

Yeah, so because this thing goes out the Outback of Australia, you get a lot of film of red dust pretty much over everything.

You've got drains that come down here where just like, your basin sinks and that kind of stuff, so it adds moisture, and then stuff sticks to it and all that.

So, yeah, sometimes just to fix up, you've gotta clean it off before you can see what you're doing.

[lively music] With the brakes finally sorted, the cars can be re-joined to the rest of the train.

[clanking] Everything's running smoothly, and the Ghan can reach its top speed, 110 kilometers per hour.

[buzz of conversation] As passengers settle down for the long journey ahead, from the train, there are already some great views.

This region, the famous Barossa Valley, is the center of wine production in Australia.

With over 150 wineries, it's got some of the best-known brands in the world.

And then, filmed from above along the railroad, the extent of South Australia's wind farms is really clear.

The area gets constant, strong westerly winds blowing off the Indian Ocean, the so-called "Roaring Forties."

Nearly half the state's electricity is generated here.

It's only the second trip on the Ghan for new chef Sean Casey.

He's busy preparing the first lunch service of the journey.

The most challenging part is probably learning to work in a confined space, and making sure that you've got all your prep and everything ready to go so that you can, uh, function properly in a confined space, which can be difficult at times.

[indistinct conversation] How this first meal goes will set the standard for the next two days.

But there's a potential problem.

A maintenance crew has discovered a serious fault on the track north of here.

[mechanical beeping] The Ghan is passing through an area of heavy industry around Port Pirie.

From above, there's a view of one of the largest lead smelters in the world.

No other country exports more lead than Australia.

The area was originally occupied by the Nukunu people, but now has large Italian and Greek communities that first grew up in the late 19th and early 20th century.

They came to work in the smelting factories.

The Ghan's been making good progress.

It's en route to its first stop in Port Augusta, but faults on the track ahead could cause serious delays to trains on the line.

With nearly 3,000 kilometers of track in need of inspection, maintenance workers have to travel massive distances, carrying everything they'll need for the job.

They drive small trucks, specially adapted to be able to drive on both road and rail, to a track problem that might be hundreds of kilometers away.

Infrastructure manager Stefan Andreucci is on his way to a fault that's been discovered up the line.

[Stefan] We're in the Land Cruiser 71 Series, fitted with the rail wheels, so allowing us to travel by rail, and making life a lot easier.

As long as you're safe with it, it's always fun.

Stefan's colleague, Nicolas Clark, is already planning how best to make the repair.

It's a plated join, and basically what's happened is the bolts have snapped, and that rail has now shifted and created that wide join.

So, what we're doing now is just replacing that, so we don't have that same issue again.

First, the section to be replaced is marked up, and the equipment is swung into position.

Just make sure it grips.

The team carries sections of spare rail.

[indistinct conversation, metallic clanging] That's what this used to look like.

It broke away, cracked.

Now we're just replacing it with a whole new piece of rail.

-[man] How do you do that?

-By welding.

Thermite welding.

[crackling] The damaged section is removed.

Once cut to length, the new piece of rail will be welded into place using a specially constructed mold.

So, these molds here will sit over the join on the rail, and the molten steel will come through the top and fill those molds.

Those molds will allow for the two pieces of rail to join.

[metal cranking] [hammering] [scraping] The mold is fitted around the joins, and any gaps packed with a mixture of wet sand.

So, the molten steel will come in the center of the mold, and that excess steel will pour out into the tray.

[Stefan] Preheating the track.

We're gonna preheat both the ends, so then the weld sticks to both rails.

So now, with the weld, what we're doing is basically permanently fixing it.

So now, it won't have any issues with separation.

The combination of metal oxides is ignited, and produces nearly 2,500 degrees Celsius in seconds.

This melts steel filler into the mold around the gap.

The technique can be used easily, even in the most remote areas, perfect for the Ghan.

With the mold removed and the weld cleaned up, it's ground to a seamless finish.

[mechanical whirring, sparks crackling] North control, Shane speaking.

Ready to clear when you are.

Amazingly, the whole repair takes less than four hours.

Trains can now pass safely.

[conductor] Ladies and gentlemen, shortly we'll be arriving into Port Augusta.

We'll stop for a brief moment while we have a driver change.

Thank you.

Port Augusta is a key part of the Ghan's history.

In 1865, more than 100 camels and 31 camel handlers were landed here by ship.

Horses had been struggling in the heat of the journey to Darwin.

Some of the riders were Afghans.

Their camel train came to be called "The Ghan."

The name stuck.

Port Augusta, with a population of just over 13,000, is the gateway to Australia's huge, but sparsely inhabited, Outback.

After Port Augusta, the Ghan sets off into the heart of the continent.

The next stop, Marla, is over 700 kilometers away.

It has a population of just 100.

On board, chef de partie Chetan Suri has only a couple of hours to prepare a five-star menu, dinner for over 85 platinum and gold-class passengers.

[woman] Yes, I'm coming.

I'm just gonna drop these.

[indistinct conversations] He's under pressure, and Mario, the journey manager, has come to give a hand.

So, tonight, as every night, we do three choices entre, three choices main, three desserts.

Of our entrees, one of them will be kangaroo loin served with corn puree, rosella chutney.

On the Ghan, the chefs make a point of sourcing regional specialties.

So normally, the Ghan is famous for a lot of different reasons.

One of the reasons is we are trying to cook, we're trying to source local products, so we design the menu in the way we are travelling.

Even tonight, we have kangaroo as our entre.

Hopefully you can see some kangaroos outside.

[buzz of conversation] The food prep is going well, but on the Ghan, it pays to expect the unexpected.

A couple of difficulties we face while working on the train, firstly, of course, is the movement.

Train technician Aaron, Green Kitchen calling.

-Are you receiving?

Over.

-Receiving, Green Kitchen.

The power is out in the Green Kitchen.

Could you please come and have a look?

Over.

Receiving that, Chet.

I'm on my way now.

Aaron Bennett is on 24-hour call to deal with emergencies just like this.

Right, so... Engine three is offline, so we've just had the power drop out on the train.

Just gotta quickly work out why.

Engine three shut down because it didn't sync in time, so we've got a third generator we can just put online now.

Start that up, and sync them together to get the power back as fast as we can cos it's kitchen service.

And... Yep.

Those two are back online.

Cool, so we should just, uh, do a walkthrough and make sure everything's all right.

Sometimes it plays up and power goes on and off.

[electricity crackling] There you go!

Everything's back.

Yep.

The power just came back, technician.

Green Kitchen out, thank you.

-[staff member] Woo-hoo!

-Woo!

Can't cook anything without the power.

As night falls, the pressure on the crew is at its height.

The passengers expect Michelin-star quality food and service.

Want me to come back for that?

-One minute.

-Yep, no worries.

-Which table number?

-It's P5.

-Yeah.

Yeah.

-Thank you.

Mains, please.

[indistinct] [bed creaking] [whimsical music] Now the train's headed for the Outback, where massive flooding destroyed the track just six weeks earlier.

[exhilarating music] The Ghan is heading through the night to a 3.30am stop in the Outback.

It's so that passengers can experience a sunrise out here in the wilderness.

Marla is in the middle of nowhere.

If you find yourself in need of a hospital, it's either a 480-kilometer round trip to Coober Pedy, or ring the Flying Doctors.

A bit like a cruise liner, the Ghan makes special stops like this to give passengers time to enjoy excursions and one-off experiences.

This is the first of three on the journey.

[lively music] Service operations supervisor Andrew Newson has got just under three hours to get everything ready.

I start setting up at about 3.30 in the morning, and doors open at 6.15.

We certainly don't have a lot of time to spare.

Sunrise won't be kept waiting.

Right now, passengers are fast asleep, but for chef Chetan Suri, it's an early start... 4.00am.

I think I just went to bed probably four, five hours ago.

I'm just gonna go and do my breakfast service, and then... [inhales] ...have a coffee and should be OK.

He's in charge of preparing an outdoor breakfast for over 150 people.

Daytime temperatures here in the desert are 35 degrees Celsius and upwards.

But at night it's chilly, only four degrees.

My chefs are up there cooking from about five this morning, baking some savory pastries for our guests, slicing up some fruit.

I'm prepping for service.

In half an hour, the doors will be open for the guests to go outside and have a cup of coffee.

And then around just after six, we'll start doing the egg and bacon sliders.

The challenge, to prepare scores of egg and bacon sliders at once, and keep them hot.

Morning.

Sunrise call.

Good morning.

Sunrise call.

-Morning.

-[knocking] Morning.

How are you?

-[man] Good morning.

-We survived.

We survived!

[man] Now, is this Vegemite?

[woman] Can I get you something to eat?

Good morning!

Bacon and egg?

Any tea or coffee at all?

Sunrise doesn't disappoint.

[dramatic music] I absolutely love this moment.

It's just so peaceful and beautiful this morning.

[woman] Yeah, you get woken up at a quarter to six and, yeah, they get you out and you have to come out and step out into the darkness and it's kind of cold.

Then suddenly the sun pops up over the horizon.

It's gorgeous!

[buzz of conversation] Mario and Andrew know there's now less than 20 minutes before the train must depart.

Any delay could hold up freight trains on the track.

[indistinct conversation] [Mario] Now we're packing down and getting ready to depart Marla soon, making our way to Alice Springs.

-That's the last one, mate.

-Thank you.

The Outback is vast, over five million square kilometers, 70% of the whole land mass of Australia.

Much of it is desert.

The Ghan is heading close to where the hottest temperature was ever recorded in Australia... over 50 degrees Celsius.

[dramatic music] Then, out of nowhere, a lake and birds.

It's a very unusual sight.

In January 2022, this part of Australia suffered huge rainstorms and massive flooding.

Over a 320-kilometer stretch, whole sections of track were completely washed away.

Rails ended up at right angles and bridges were seriously damaged, leaving tracks hanging in the air.

Work group leader Randall Day was among the maintenance workers sent to fix the line.

This is a few of the photos of the flooding at the start of the year, we went up to repair.

There's just large sections of the track and the embankment fully washed away, just pushed right through, washed the culverts out as well.

His team needed to carry out the repairs urgently.

Three freight trains were stranded, and neither goods nor passenger trains could get from Adelaide through to Alice Springs and Darwin.

The main road to the north, the Stuart Highway, was flooded too.

Towns and communities in Northern Australia began running out of fresh food.

The amount of rainfall was totally unexpected, a year's worth in three days.

Extreme weather events like these are happening more often because of rapid climate change.

Working in nearly 40-degree heat, over 100 maintenance workers, including Randall's team, set about repairing the tracks.

And, extraordinarily, just over three weeks later, the first of the stranded freight trains was able to complete its journey.

Today, on a nearby stretch of line, Randall and his team are using the same skills to fix another fault caused by wet weather.

So, just the edge of the level crossing's got a bit of a dip on it.

So it just causes a bit of pumping over when the train goes over it.

Rain has caused a mud hole to form under the sleepers.

As the train passes, the rails go up and down, pumping out the mud, making the holes even bigger.

In the Ungele yard.

Could be a drainage issue, which a lot of times with the high sides it can cause it.

So, obviously we've identified this little spot.

If the holes are left, they could cause a derailment.

[mechanical beeping] Restoring track for train number 4500, and reporting no later than 12.30 hours.

Stefan Andreucci needs to get clearance to start work.

Doing 100kms an hour you wanna definitely make sure you're nowhere near that!

I've been advised that one's coming through at 12.45 hours, so we'll have to clear at 12.30 hours.

The clock is ticking.

There's less than four hours before a freight train is due to pass.

Once loose material underneath the line is removed, new ballast can be poured in and packed tightly to support the weight.

All right, that'll do.

Go on the other side.

With minutes to go and the crew standing far back from the line, the expected goods train hurtles through.

On the Ghan Line, the train continues its journey north, towards the heart of Australia and the center of the Outback... Alice Springs.

But there's a worrying sound coming from coach H. It could be a serious wheel problem.

[tranquil music] As the Ghan closes in on Alice Springs, the stunning West MacDonnell Ranges come into view, ancient mountains that rise out of the red desert.

The famous gap in the mountains allows just enough space for the railway, the main highway, and the Todd River.

[conductor] Ladies and gentlemen, we're approaching Alice Springs Terminal.

We ask that all guests please do remain seated until you hear the appropriate announcement that it's safe to disembark.

There can be some jolting as the Ghan comes to a halt.

Thank you.

The statue at Alice Springs Station is a reminder that this was once a staging post for the original Ghan, the camel train route.

And this is where the old Ghan railway line ended.

While the train is refueled and checked over, the passengers are off on excursions around the town.

Alice Springs is the midway point of the journey.

It's a small town, only 26,480 inhabitants, but it's known throughout the world.

It began as an important telegraph station between Adelaide and Darwin.

From here, visitors can travel to the stunning Rainbow Valley, and further afield, to Australia's most iconic location, Uluru, or Ayers Rock, a sacred site for the local aboriginal people.

Some passengers have chosen to explore the landscape around Alice in the spirit of the old Ghan... by camel.

Camels were still being used for transport until the 1940s.

During the four-and-a-half hours the passengers are exploring the area, Rebecca Roberts, the Ghan's second on-board technician alongside Aaron, takes the opportunity to check out worrying noises from carriage H. It might be a wheel issue, which could cause serious problems.

So, they reported it was carriage H, but it's more than likely it could be either side.

So, it could be G or H. So, it's worthwhile to check either side.

But whenever I check the wheel, always check it like it's possibly gonna move, so you never put your fingers down below the wheel.

Always check it up here, so you can pull your hand away quickly.

Rebecca needs to check every wheel on carriages G and H before the train can proceed.

If a wheel is seriously damaged, worst case, the carriage will have to be left behind.

[soft music playing] Two new drivers are taking over, the third change so far.

Scott Fels has been driving the Ghan for ten years.

So, one of the first jobs I'm gonna do while sitting here is perform a brake test on the train.

I really don't care if it goes, but I just wanna make sure it stops.

[system beeps] Ah.

It's looking pretty good.

It's not uncommon for the Ghan to have to slow down quickly, or even stop in an emergency, to avoid collisions with wildlife.

Kangaroos are frequently hit by cars, trucks, and trains in the Outback.

And there are wild camels, the descendants of camels set free when they were no longer needed.

They're especially vulnerable, because they like to lick dew off the rails.

Well, in this job you've gotta be vigilant for a lot of things.

Um, out in the open, we don't encounter a lot of people, so the only things you're really looking out for is... Livestock is the biggest thing that we would encounter.

Cos a lot of the rail network is unfenced, and you're continuously keeping an eye out for, like, cattle or horses, or camels in our case.

If an animal is large enough, it can even cause a derailment.

Once the locomotive goes into an emergency brake application, the computer system will then take over, calculate the distance it's travelling at, the speed and the weight, and will start to bring its own brakes on as well, to bring you to a stop as soon as possible.

Rebecca has finally tracked down the faulty wheel.

[Rebecca] There seems to be a bit of, um, irregularity with this wheel here.

So, it seems like it's got a bit of a groove in it, so that will go back to our, um, mechanics, and they'll just monitor it.

So, every time it goes back to Adelaide, they check it out.

Back at the Ghan Service Base in Adelaide, the team has found a very similar wheel problem.

It's on a train being readied for the next journey to Darwin.

Close inspection has shown that one wheel is seriously chipped.

The wheels, um, have worn through, um, heat and made small pieces of metal come off, which is called spalling, which makes a clunk-clunk sound when it's going along the track.

High temperatures caused by heavy braking, a consequence of the huge length and weight of the train, can cause the metal to change its state.

It makes the wheels brittle.

Replacing the wheel is a big job.

First, the problem carriage has to be separated from the rest of the train.

Here at the service base, there is a veritable graveyard of damaged wheels, as the mileage, heat, and dust have taken their toll.

[drilling] Unlike changing the wheel on a car, several items need disconnecting first.

Air lines for the brakes, handbrake chain, keeper plates holding the axles onto the wheel section, and electrical earthing straps.

Then the hard work can really begin.

The carriage needs to be lifted clear using motorized jacks, and finally the damaged section can be wheeled free.

[Michael] The job can be hazardous because you've got your hands holding springs and guiding people who are lowering it with a crane, so you just have to be aware and communicate with each other.

But yeah, hazardous, that.

Once separated, the whole wheel assembly is replaced with a refurbished set.

[mechanic] All good.

With the rest of the unit stripped down, the other wheels can be checked and the whole process reversed in readiness for the next outgoing Ghan.

[mechanical beeping] In Alice Springs, it's time for the train to depart.

All the camel riders are safely back, and a headcount carried out to make sure no one's left behind.

[exhilarating music] This stretch of line from Alice Springs to Darwin is recent.

It opened only in 2004.

Until then, most goods and passengers looking to complete the long journey had to go by road.

The new rail track runs for 1,400 kilometers.

It took three years and 1.3 billion Australian dollars to build.

When they awake, the passengers will have travelled another 1,000 kilometers, leaving the Outback way behind.

The passengers may be heading into the cool of the night, but one of the carriages is showing a worrying increase in temperature.

If its air conditioning unit fails completely, it'll mean a very hot, sticky day tomorrow.

[tranquil music] Travelling through the night, the Ghan has left Australia's arid red landscape behind, emerging at dawn deep in the Northern Territory, into a different world.

Katherine, the train's next stop, is where the Outback meets the tropics.

It's a beautiful, lush paradise, with stunning gorges, misty waterfalls, and thermal springs.

There are even freshwater crocodiles.

[conductor] A very good morning, ladies and gentlemen.

On time arrival into Katherine this morning of 9.00am.

Maximum temperature in Katherine today is 37 degrees, so once again, we ask you please do remain hydrated.

Approximately 30 minutes to Katherine.

Thank you.

The plan at Katherine is to give passengers a unique opportunity to see some ancient aboriginal art at first hand.

As always, time is tight, and tour buses are already arriving at Katherine Station to pick up the passengers.

The railroad between Adelaide and Darwin is mostly single track.

There's not enough traffic to justify a second set of rails.

But here at Katherine, a loop has been built to enable trains to pass.

It's one of several on the line.

From above, two freight trains can be seen using the crossing point.

Once cleared, the northbound Ghan is slowly maneuvered onto the loop, alongside the platform.

As well as giving passengers their excursions, the stop here is for refueling and another crew change.

[upbeat music] [buzz of conversation] It's journey manager Mario Gleeson's job to get the passengers onto the right trips.

[Mario] We have 174 guests going away on tour this morning, so it's a combination of the gorge cruise, helicopters, and, uh, the rock art.

While the train is empty, on-board engineer Aaron Bennett is taking the opportunity to check out the aircon problem in one of the carriages.

Um, yeah, it's up to about 25 degrees at the moment, which is a little bit too high.

It should be around the 22 to 20 mark.

[creaking] The control breaker has been tripping intermittently, so it's not the compressor which has probably blown.

It's more an electrical problem, so could be either a loose wire, or a contact that could be faulty.

So, they'll try and trace the fault out now inside the train, in the control cabinet.

The overload was loose on the contact that feeds the compressor underneath so... Just tightening it up.

And yeah, that would've been causing the breaker to trip, because it would've been overloading the circuit breaker.

So, should be problem solved.

The most popular of the excursions is to Nitmiluk Gorge, sometimes known as Katherine Gorge.

In fact, it's 13 gorges, with rapids and falls on the Katherine River.

Its waters eventually reach the sea at Anson Bay, southwest of Darwin.

Hello, you're welcome to make your way up and I'll meet you all up there.

The gorges are of immense significance to the Jawoyn people, who've lived in the area for thousands of years.

Among them is James Cadell, who's guiding the tour.

The men who are painted, the one in the middle, if you look near his left-hand shoulder, you'll see two men up there.

One of the men's holding a weird object in his hand.

Kind of looks like an umbrella.

The area is home to some of Australia's oldest art.

The paintings record stories to be passed down to later generations about the spirits of creation, about hunting, butchery, and about religion and magic.

Now, he's actually painted here for a reason, because in one of our dream time stories for the Rainbow Serpent.

Now, they just came back from hunting, they caught a kangaroo.

The kangaroo's on the right with the joey in her pouch.

That memory spirit with the egg-shaped head on the left is teaching the right ceremony, the right dance, the right way to cook him, to cut him.

So, it's being passed down generation to generation.

[man] It's such an education.

The indigenous guy, he's taught us so much about the Rainbow Serpent and how he created these valleys and it's just wonderful, um, to have experienced this.

Today, these ancient works of art are among the oldest and longest-running records of any group of people in the world.

How are you, girls?

You have a good time?

-[overlapping conversations] -Excellent.

[woman] Thank you.

[dramatic music] The Ghan is now on the final leg of its journey to Darwin, where there's high humidity and the risk of monsoon rains and massive thunderstorms.

[thunder booming] [uplifting music] The final 300 kilometers to Darwin.

The habitat here is Australia's tropical savannah.

Right now, the weather is calm, and the train's passing places redolent with Australian history.

From above, Pine Creek, the site of a famous gold rush in the 19th century, when gold was discovered by workers building the telegraph line from Alice Springs to Darwin.

As mines opened and prospectors flooded in, it grew so fast that a narrow-gauge railway to Darwin was built in 1888.

It survived until 1976.

[light music] Sean Casey's at the end of his first week on the Ghan, and has just one lunch service to go.

I did a trip five days ago, then they called me to go on this trip.

Big bonus.

I love seeing the Outback.

Never been to Alice Springs, never been to Darwin, never been to Marla, so it's been some phenomenal experiences I've had in the seven days I've been on the train.

It's been really good.

Really good.

Having someone phenomenal to train you is probably the quickest way to learn.

Someone that shows you how it gets done, what needs to be done, quickest way to learn.

The train's passing another historic site, Adelaide River, a small community of 350 people.

During World War II, the town was an important Allied military base, where thousands of Australian and American soldiers prepared to go off to war in the Pacific against the Japanese.

110 kilometers back from the coast, it was considered safe from the Japanese bombers that in February 1942 had launched ferocious attacks on Darwin.

[Mario] I'd like to take this opportunity, on behalf of our crew, to farewell all of our guests.

It has been an absolute pleasure having you on board, and we hope you enjoyed your journey through the heart of Australia on the Ghan.

[uplifting music] The bridge over the Elizabeth River is the gateway to Darwin itself.

Until 20 years ago, it was a road bridge only, but was widened to carry trains as well.

The train pauses to allow journey manager Mario Gleeson off, to help guide the carriages into their final position.

[train horn blares] NR74, we're now set up on the ground.

I will count you down to six carriages, and you're right to pull forward.

Over.

NR74, you now have two cars to go.

NR74, you now have one car to go.

There you go.

Welcome to Darwin.

Darwin is named after naturalist Charles Darwin.

His old shipmates named it in his honor when they arrived there on the Beagle's third voyage.

There's mixed feelings, because we've had this wonderful relationship with a lot of guests that have joined us from Adelaide all the way to Darwin.

You create that friendship and now you've gotta say goodbye.

It was an absolute pleasure having you with us.

This city is nearly 3,000 kilometers from Adelaide, and the climate is very different, tropical and humid.

It's known as Australia's lightning capital.

[lightning cracks] Today, Darwin is growing fast.

Since the start of the Second World War, its population has increased 70 times, to 140,000.

It's a major port, a gateway to Asia.

And with over 5% of people employed in hospitality in the region, tourism's of growing importance.

Today, the Ghan's passengers are happily adding to the throng.

Thank you very much.

It's been a pleasure having you with us.

-And the staff were brilliant.

-Oh, thank you so much.

Thank you for joining us.

So, we'll be finishing work around six o'clock.

We will board a coach for the crew.

Um, we'll have a wonderful night's rest, and do it all over again tomorrow morning!

On its return to Adelaide, the Ghan will again battle across this land of extremes, facing intense heat, herds of animals, and the threat of biblical flooding.

[lightning cracks] That the journey is possible at all is testament to the work of an army of unseen engineers.

It's the very challenge of this epic trip, together with the stunning scenery through which it passes, that makes this one of the greatest Epic Train Journeys From Above.