There is nothing as memorable as the scenic sights of nature as one looks out of the window of a moving vehicle. A train ride, albeit a slow one, is not excluded as I found out during a recent journey to Tenom.
My 48 kilometres ride from Beaufort to Tenom started at 1pm. It is a 48km ride on the railway which is actually 134km from Kota Kinabalu, the state capital of Sabah.
The train comprised of three carriages including the main one with the driver and there were two other carriages behind it. These two carriages were quite simple; just a few seats with open windows. There was no air conditioning. I noticed that people carrying lots of shopping boarded these carriages. Their shopping included bags of rice, trays of eggs and even a few cooking-gas cylinders.
The front carriage had a mildly cool air conditioning and better seats, half of which faced the back and the other half faced the front. You have good leg room in the middle where the rows of seats meet face to face. You’d also have a chance to chat properly with your travel companion.
The train left Beaufort station with a honk of its horn and it chugged away towards our destination. I was excited as I simply love long rides. It chugged away on its rail, while the green lush trees and shrubberies seemed to flash by.
I saw hamlets nestled on the hillocks and hillside surrounded by fruit trees and houses with flowering plants around it, as well as children and dogs watching the train go by. On the left side, the Padas river flowed down its bed, merrily.
Looking at the rustic villages and the ambiance of the slow moving train, I remembered that this railway was constructed in 1896 under the command of William Clark Cowie who was an engineer. He was assisted by a local from Keningau called Gounon. The railway was established as transportation for tobacco from the interior for export. By 1903, the railway reached Jesselton now Kota Kinabalu and thus spanned 193 kilometres. It was almost destroyed during the Second World War but was reconstructed soon afterwards.
With the constructions of roads, several part of the railway were closed, except for Tanjung Aru to Beaufort and Beaufort to Tenom. The train served the populace of villages along the tracks as their main mode of transportation. Without the train they would not have access to the shops in Beaufort or Tenom.
Anyway, I was jolted out of my reverie when the train stopped several kilometres later and we were told to disembark as we would be boarding another train for Tenom. We were informed that the rail to Tenom was narrower, thus needing another sort of train to traverse.
We patiently disembarked and about half an hour later, another locomotive came and after maneuvering , it was hooked up and we went on board again. It chugged away again, bringing us through scenic villages. The sights could be a photographer’s dream, although the swaying and bumping of the train are hardly good for even phone camera shots. We were told that the railway track would be upgraded soon so that the train would chug off to Tenom without changing on the way.
We reached Tenom safe and sound at about 4.30pm. Despite the bumpy ride, the experience was fun and worth repeating. For those who have never been on this train, this is a good experience for you and your children as you will not only enjoy the good scenic views but will also have a brief insight on the condition of our train, a part of history. -ce/BNN
