Steam in South Africa - Pt 2 - Bloemfontein to Marseilles & Vailima with Class 25NC &15F locomotives

I was able to shoot this video because Bernd Seiler, the man behind FarRail tours was prepared to take a huge personal risk in attempting to create scenes most people believed would never be seen again. He arranged for steam locomotives and old waggons to run on a scenic rail route, part of which was no longer in regular use. He and his small team also arranged for the locomotives to be crewed and serviced. Behind the scenes, against impossible odds Bernd and his team worked tirelessly to create the panoramas featured in this video. I owe Bernd and his team a massive “thank you” for making this video possible.
It was only when I started editing that I began to understand what this tour was setting out to achieve. Sorting out the scenes, following the route on Google earth and finding photographs people had posted on the internet helped me to really appreciate the wonderful experience this tour had been. As I viewed the scenes, I forgot about the early morning starts, the freezing cold and the long bus rides to the various photographic locations Bernd had researched, instead I appreciated the majesty of the massive steam locomotives, the sound of the engines climbing challenging gradients in some of the worlds most colourful and wonderful scenery. Usually when I'm editing videos, I've had enough of watching them by the time it comes to reviewing the finished result, not so with video I loved every minute of watching the final edit because I was re-living one of the most remarkable rail tours I've ever been fortunate enough to participate in. In this video we see giant steam behemoths dwarfed by breathtaking scenery, recreating moments that will live with me forever. Please join me on this remarkable journey to South Africa's High Karoo.

Maps – 00:16 – Google Earth/Maps and https://www.openrailwaymap.org/

Tour arranged by FarRail - https://www.farrail.com/

Locomotives featured - Class 25NC 4-8-4 No.3437 "Sianni" & Class 15F 4-8-2 No.2976.

Track Gauge - 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) Cape gauge track.

Tour date - 17th July to 1st August 2024