Puff Goes The Billy…
Ok…what’s with puff goes the Billy, you ask? Well, think about it. It is not as though the weasel has exclusive rights to go pop! If Billy can puff just as good as or probably better than the weasel can pop, then why shouldn’t Billy go puff?
Ok, before you close the window and go off to doing something more useful than reading this blog, let me tempt you to stay. The missus and I had a great weekend on the Dandenong Ranges aboard the Puffing Billy. See, now you made the connection, didn’t you? Puffing Billy is, as you’ve probably guessed or then again, as you probably still haven't guessed, a hundred year old steam rail, a genuine relic. A historic steam train still running regularly in the mountain district, it was built to serve at the turn of the century. Now, that has always got me thinking, you know. Why turn of the century? Do centuries turn every now and then? Then again, why not twist or bend or curve of the century? Why only turn…oh, but I digress. Bad habit with me, that. Coming back to Puffing Billy, the Railway is the sole survivor of four experimental lines used to develop rural areas of Australia in the early 1900's.
So, with that kind of a history, it is no wonder that Puffing Billy is now a major tourist attraction. So, when I heard and read about this train, and the scenic views that were promised as the train wound its way through the Dandenong Ranges, we decided to take the trip. Of course, it is not that I swallowed everything the brochures had to say hook, line and sinker. I have learnt caution, if nothing else since coming here. Australia is a beautiful country, and its people go the extra mile to package its beauty so well that you think both heaven and earth are on display. So, you pack your picnic basket, and your autograph book, hoping a few angels might oblige, and reach your destination. You make a diligent search, but of heaven, you find no sign. You conclude, reasonably, that heaven was probably symbolic, but still, where on earth is the earth? So, you walk into the Information Centre and you finally learn, yes the heaven was symbolic all right, and did they say the earth, oh, they just mean an acre of it, that’s all. Reminds me of the time I went to the Melbourne Aquarium…oh, but that is another story.
So, it was with a pinch of salt that I embarked upon the journey to be pleasantly disabused of my suspicions. We took the Met train to Flinder’s Street and from there the 10:10 train to Belgrave. Belgrave is nearly at the foothills of the Dandenong Ranges. We got to see some pretty scenery on the way and finally reached Belgrave at 11:30 am. From there, a small track takes you to the Puffing Billy station. The track is lined with trees and ferns and it seems to you that you are entering an exotic world even as you walk to the station.
The station was quaint, with an old world feel to it. Being a bit hungry, we first bought a sandwich each, and well restored, proceeded to explore the station. Did you know…well, of course, you wouldn’t, now would you?…that Puffing Billy is entirely run by volunteers? Volunteers are the lifeblood of the railway, and they are there practically everywhere - conductors, shop assistants, train hosts, porters, booking clerks, engineers, station master, guard, signalman! And I want to place on record here that they are all uniformly so courteous, pleasant and friendly that you feel so much at home aboard the train.
The 12:20 train was the Luncheon Special, so it had two or three First Class carriages where you could dine aboard the train. But it was not lunch we had in mind, so we skipped First Class and made our way to one of the other carriages. Unlike normal trains, the seats in Puffing Billy are along the length of the carriage - two rows, back to back facing the large windows to let in all the view. The window sills were large, with two safety bars across, so unless you were blessed (or cursed) with extraordinary girth, you could actually sit on the window sills, and hang your legs out. Most of the children were already seated on the sills, and quite a few adults too. It was fun, by the way, especially, when the train negotiated some curves, and you could see the engine turning in the front. But, I am getting ahead of myself.
The train started at about 12:30 and people were really excited about the steam engine. Not minding the smoke and the ash that kept flying into their eyes, they eagerly peeped out of the windows to look at the engine and take snaps of it. Of course, used as we were to steam engines back home in India, it was not such a novelty, but we couldn’t help being taken in by all the excitement that everyone generated!
The train meandered through the forests of fern and eucalyptus, once in a while breaking out with a grand view of rolling farmlands and at one spot, even Port Philip Bay. It was a scenic route, interspersed with railway crossings, where people waited in their cars, patiently, waving to us in the train with much friendliness.
Past Menzies Creek and Nobelius and Emerald, we finally reached Lakeside. After dropping us off at the station, Billy puffed away, leaving us wondering where the Lake of the Lakeside was. Side, there definitely was, but lake? Before we wrote off "lake" to one of the heaven and earth brochure thingy, we spotted the waters. Well hidden by the parklands that surround it, Emerald Lake deserves its name. The waters were green, thanks to the reflection of the countless trees that grew all around . A few people were paddling on Aqua Bikes in the lake, and that got the wife pretty excited. Let’s have a go, she said. I have a better idea, said I, let us not. Inevitably and rather unsurprisingly, she won, and we signed up for a fifteen minute trip across the green waters for ten dollars. They had an offer – twenty minutes for just $11. A mean thing to do, if you ask me, tempting the unsuspecting and unwary to fall for it, but I was strict. Wisdom garnered as a young boy of ten came rusing to my aid. Fifteen minutes is all we do, said I firmly, recollecting a similar experience on a paddle boat in the Ooty Lake years ago. But that is another tale.
Seeing me in the Aqua Bike, pedalling for all I was worth, if anyone had cared to place a wager on me against Puffing Billy, he’d have won. I huffed and puffed more in those fifteen minutes than Billy did the whole trip. I mean, give me a break. For years now, the only exercise I have known is to walk to the vending machine to grab a cup of hot chocolate, and all of a sudden, you expect me to bike away merrily across still waters? Anyway, despite feeling hot and uncomfortable, those were fun moments, as we finally came back to the dock, a good three minutes before time. Terra firma had never been more welcome than when I stepped off the blasted contraption, while the wife giggled in glee with pure childish delight. Privately, I prefer the term sadistic pleasure!
The parklands offered lovely spots to lunch, which we promptly did. Some more walking and it was time to return. We caught the 4:00 PM train from Lakside back to Belgrave. Tired, but still enthusiastic, we made most of the return trip. One short walk later, we re-entered contemporary suburbia, where a train awaited us to Ringwood. We changed at Ringwood and completed our journey back to Flinder’s. Altogether, a wonderful way to spend a Saturday, especially of a long weekend. (Monday was off. Labour day!)
Puffing Billy is one trip that I would not mind making once more. Of course, minus the Aqua Bike, that is. If you are interested in knowing more, go here: Puffing Billy. And do make the trip once, if you are planning to come to Melbourne, or if despite living in Melbourne, you have never made it. And thank all those volunteers for me. They are doing an admirable job, keeping Billy alive and...well, puffing!
Ok, before you close the window and go off to doing something more useful than reading this blog, let me tempt you to stay. The missus and I had a great weekend on the Dandenong Ranges aboard the Puffing Billy. See, now you made the connection, didn’t you? Puffing Billy is, as you’ve probably guessed or then again, as you probably still haven't guessed, a hundred year old steam rail, a genuine relic. A historic steam train still running regularly in the mountain district, it was built to serve at the turn of the century. Now, that has always got me thinking, you know. Why turn of the century? Do centuries turn every now and then? Then again, why not twist or bend or curve of the century? Why only turn…oh, but I digress. Bad habit with me, that. Coming back to Puffing Billy, the Railway is the sole survivor of four experimental lines used to develop rural areas of Australia in the early 1900's.
So, with that kind of a history, it is no wonder that Puffing Billy is now a major tourist attraction. So, when I heard and read about this train, and the scenic views that were promised as the train wound its way through the Dandenong Ranges, we decided to take the trip. Of course, it is not that I swallowed everything the brochures had to say hook, line and sinker. I have learnt caution, if nothing else since coming here. Australia is a beautiful country, and its people go the extra mile to package its beauty so well that you think both heaven and earth are on display. So, you pack your picnic basket, and your autograph book, hoping a few angels might oblige, and reach your destination. You make a diligent search, but of heaven, you find no sign. You conclude, reasonably, that heaven was probably symbolic, but still, where on earth is the earth? So, you walk into the Information Centre and you finally learn, yes the heaven was symbolic all right, and did they say the earth, oh, they just mean an acre of it, that’s all. Reminds me of the time I went to the Melbourne Aquarium…oh, but that is another story.
So, it was with a pinch of salt that I embarked upon the journey to be pleasantly disabused of my suspicions. We took the Met train to Flinder’s Street and from there the 10:10 train to Belgrave. Belgrave is nearly at the foothills of the Dandenong Ranges. We got to see some pretty scenery on the way and finally reached Belgrave at 11:30 am. From there, a small track takes you to the Puffing Billy station. The track is lined with trees and ferns and it seems to you that you are entering an exotic world even as you walk to the station.
The station was quaint, with an old world feel to it. Being a bit hungry, we first bought a sandwich each, and well restored, proceeded to explore the station. Did you know…well, of course, you wouldn’t, now would you?…that Puffing Billy is entirely run by volunteers? Volunteers are the lifeblood of the railway, and they are there practically everywhere - conductors, shop assistants, train hosts, porters, booking clerks, engineers, station master, guard, signalman! And I want to place on record here that they are all uniformly so courteous, pleasant and friendly that you feel so much at home aboard the train.
The 12:20 train was the Luncheon Special, so it had two or three First Class carriages where you could dine aboard the train. But it was not lunch we had in mind, so we skipped First Class and made our way to one of the other carriages. Unlike normal trains, the seats in Puffing Billy are along the length of the carriage - two rows, back to back facing the large windows to let in all the view. The window sills were large, with two safety bars across, so unless you were blessed (or cursed) with extraordinary girth, you could actually sit on the window sills, and hang your legs out. Most of the children were already seated on the sills, and quite a few adults too. It was fun, by the way, especially, when the train negotiated some curves, and you could see the engine turning in the front. But, I am getting ahead of myself.
The train started at about 12:30 and people were really excited about the steam engine. Not minding the smoke and the ash that kept flying into their eyes, they eagerly peeped out of the windows to look at the engine and take snaps of it. Of course, used as we were to steam engines back home in India, it was not such a novelty, but we couldn’t help being taken in by all the excitement that everyone generated!
The train meandered through the forests of fern and eucalyptus, once in a while breaking out with a grand view of rolling farmlands and at one spot, even Port Philip Bay. It was a scenic route, interspersed with railway crossings, where people waited in their cars, patiently, waving to us in the train with much friendliness.
Past Menzies Creek and Nobelius and Emerald, we finally reached Lakeside. After dropping us off at the station, Billy puffed away, leaving us wondering where the Lake of the Lakeside was. Side, there definitely was, but lake? Before we wrote off "lake" to one of the heaven and earth brochure thingy, we spotted the waters. Well hidden by the parklands that surround it, Emerald Lake deserves its name. The waters were green, thanks to the reflection of the countless trees that grew all around . A few people were paddling on Aqua Bikes in the lake, and that got the wife pretty excited. Let’s have a go, she said. I have a better idea, said I, let us not. Inevitably and rather unsurprisingly, she won, and we signed up for a fifteen minute trip across the green waters for ten dollars. They had an offer – twenty minutes for just $11. A mean thing to do, if you ask me, tempting the unsuspecting and unwary to fall for it, but I was strict. Wisdom garnered as a young boy of ten came rusing to my aid. Fifteen minutes is all we do, said I firmly, recollecting a similar experience on a paddle boat in the Ooty Lake years ago. But that is another tale.
Seeing me in the Aqua Bike, pedalling for all I was worth, if anyone had cared to place a wager on me against Puffing Billy, he’d have won. I huffed and puffed more in those fifteen minutes than Billy did the whole trip. I mean, give me a break. For years now, the only exercise I have known is to walk to the vending machine to grab a cup of hot chocolate, and all of a sudden, you expect me to bike away merrily across still waters? Anyway, despite feeling hot and uncomfortable, those were fun moments, as we finally came back to the dock, a good three minutes before time. Terra firma had never been more welcome than when I stepped off the blasted contraption, while the wife giggled in glee with pure childish delight. Privately, I prefer the term sadistic pleasure!
The parklands offered lovely spots to lunch, which we promptly did. Some more walking and it was time to return. We caught the 4:00 PM train from Lakside back to Belgrave. Tired, but still enthusiastic, we made most of the return trip. One short walk later, we re-entered contemporary suburbia, where a train awaited us to Ringwood. We changed at Ringwood and completed our journey back to Flinder’s. Altogether, a wonderful way to spend a Saturday, especially of a long weekend. (Monday was off. Labour day!)
Puffing Billy is one trip that I would not mind making once more. Of course, minus the Aqua Bike, that is. If you are interested in knowing more, go here: Puffing Billy. And do make the trip once, if you are planning to come to Melbourne, or if despite living in Melbourne, you have never made it. And thank all those volunteers for me. They are doing an admirable job, keeping Billy alive and...well, puffing!
