Travel on a steam train linking the historic gold mining towns of Castlemaine and Maldon in Central Victoria. The Victorian Goldfields Railway makes an ideal day trip from Melbourne – as highlighted by this video.
In this video I travel in one of the elegant first class carriages but also show what the other class of travel, excursion class, is like.
Winding through forest and open land in Central Victoria, the Victorian Goldfields Railway is a remnant of the extensive branch line railway system which served rural Victoria from around 1880 through to the 1970s.
We step outside and to see the scenery from the end viewing platform of the parlour car and look at the menu options from the bar. We get to visit the town of Maldon, which the National Trust of Victoria declared "Australia's first notable town" in 1966.
Steam locomotives operate most services, although diesels are used during total fire bans or when steam is not available. During December, January and February all services are hauled by diesel locomotives.
Victorian Goldfields Railways fares and bookings:
http://www.vgr.com.au/fares.php
🚉 Train: Victorian Goldfields Railway
🚉 Operator: Castlemaine and Maldon Railway Preservation Society
🚉 Locomotives: J549 and Y133 (Y Class Diesel Electric)
🚉 Carriage: Pullman car Macedon
🚉 Route: Castlemaine to Maldon via Muckleford
🚉 Distance: 17km
🚉 Travel time: 45 minutes (each way)
🚉 Class: First class
🚉 Travel date: 17 April 2022
EQUIPMENT:
🚉 Cameras: GoPro Hero 10, GoPro Hero 8, iPhone 12 Pro Max, Panasonic HC-VX1
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
00:40 VLocity to Castlemaine
01:50 Castlemaine Railway Station and boarding
03:00 Macedon club car and departure
04:00 Railway history and route map
05:30 Muckleford Railway Station and yard
07:00 First class carriage tour
08:45 End viewing platform
09:45 Views of the train and Maldon Railway Station
11:55 Exploring Maldon
12:30 Up close with Victorian Railways J class
13:07 Departing Maldon and rail history
13:56 Fares and views from the front
15:15 Arriving in Castlemaine
17:35 Final thoughts and views of the train
18:25 VLocity preview
Credits and sources:
http://www.vgr.com.au/history.php
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_Railways_J_class_(1954)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_Goldfields_Railway
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maldon,_Victoria
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castlemaine,_Victoria
Victorian Goldfields Railway map
http://www.vgr.com.au/maps/vgr_map.pdf
OpenRailwayMap:
https://www.openrailwaymap.org
#heritagerailway #steamtrains #castlemaine