Railway Tracks

New Zealand used to be a country covered with a network of railway tracks. Road transport was nearly non-existent and roads were in a bad condition; ship transport was slow. However, with the appearance of modern roads and long-distance trucks, the glorious days of the railway ended. Only the backbone tracks and several local tracks remained, which are fortunate to be, for example, in the vicinity of coal mines. Transport of passengers, as we know in Europe, is virtually non-existent here – the suburban railways in the surroundings of Auckland and Wellington are exceptions.
But still several railway tracks, which are world-renowned, have remained here in New Zealand. These tracks include primarily the TranzAlpine track between Christchurch and Greymouth, which crosses South Alps, and the experience of the ride equals to that on Swiss mountain railway tracks. Another very interesting railway track leads through the southern part of the South Island – years ago, it was literally resurrected thanks to the effort of a group of enthusiasts and today, it is a natural icon for the local residents and an attraction for tourists, leading through monumental viaducts. 
Besides the above-mentioned tracks, you can take a ride on many shorter sections with "steam". Mostly, these sections are several kilometres long remnants of the original tracks where local fans maintain many-year-old steam locomotives and the original wooden railway cars.

Photogallery