SideTracked 2023 - Alice Springs - 16th Anniversary
This event is being held to coincide with the arrival of The Ghan on Monday 7th August 2023, being in SideTracked Anniversary week.
Date: 7th August, 2023 (SideTracked Anniversary Week)
Time: 1.30pm to 2.30pm
About SideTracked Caches
This cache belongs to the SideTracked series. It is not designed to take you to a magical place with a breath taking view. It's a distraction for the weary traveller, but anyone else can go and find it too. More Information can be found at the SideTracked Website
Place: At the park where the camels rest
and we can watch The Ghan arrive.
Some history of Alice Springs and The Ghan
Alice Springs was established as a telegraph station and was part of the Overland Telegraph Line opened in 1872. This line allowed Australia to communicate with the rest of the world.
The original railway line through here followed the route taken by the Afghan cameleers who came to Australia in the 1830s and provided transport for goods and supplies. The original Alice Springs railway station opened in 1929 and later a new railway line was established and rerouted to avoid some very flood prone areas on the first route. This new rail line was eventually completed, crossing Australia from Adelaide to Darwin and it was opened in 2004. The train is called The Ghan and runs once a week each way in the off season, taking 3 days and 2 nights to travel the full length of the line. In peak season (June to September) there are 2 services each way per week.
The Railway line covers a distance of 2979 km (1846 miles) from Adelaide to Darwin, with the train itself being about 774 metres long (846 yards). It is now a tourist train but also carries vehicles.
