On October 13, 2024, in the morning, one of the last steam trains on this section of line passes a paradisiac landscape. This view of the Rosental viaduct (over the Rosen River) is now history as the bridge can’t be used any more. See my comment under my picture flic.kr/p/2qKuAmH
© Jean-Marc Frybourg – 241013-3293
Tags: Autriche Austria Österreich Carinthie Carinthia Kärnten Rosenbach train à vapeur locomotive à vapeur dampflok dampfzug steam train steam engine viaduc pont bridge viaduct viadukt Rosenbach-viadukt ÖBB 93.1332 378.32 2-8-2-Tank 141T NBiK Nostalgiebahnen in Kärnten Rosentaler Dampfzüge Rosentalbahn river rivière torrent morning matin mist brouillard fog
On October 12 and 13 2024, a steam charter crossed the Rosental viaduct several times each way as a farewell to the bridge. The line is closed to commercial traffic and only sees tourist services. The section of line where this viaduct is located is bypassed by another, electrified itinerary.
The cost of maintenance to keep the viaduct safe is prohibitive. That was the last time a train was allowed to cross the valley. An expert-backed decision is expected in 2025 to decide whether the line can still be used – see here kaernten.orf.at/stories/3287615/
On the right-hand side, there is a tunnel right at the end of the viaduct. It is the Lessach-Tunnel (111 m). Then the line reaches Rosenbach where it joins the international electrified line coming from Villach and going to Slovenia through the 7977 m Karawankentunnel.
For another view from the same position with a very different light, shot the next morning, see here: flic.kr/p/2qKGJrE
© Jean-Marc Frybourg – 241012-2875
Tags: Autriche Austria Österreich Carinthie Carinthia Kärnten Rosenbach train à vapeur locomotive à vapeur dampflok dampfzug steam train steam engine viaduc pont bridge viaduct viadukt Rosenbach-viadukt ÖBB 93.1332 378.32 2-8-2-Tank 141T NBiK Nostalgiebahnen in Kärnten Rosentaler Dampfzüge Rosentalbahn river rivière torrent evening backlit silhouette contre-jour
On October 13, 2024, right east of Maria Elend, Carinthia province, Austria, a FarRail steam charter passes the großen Suchagraben viaduct on the Großer Dürrenbach, a mountain stream coming down from the Karawanks range. The bridge is located about 1 km before the Großer Dürrenbach flows into the Drava River, which itself flows into the Danube (Donau) about 500 km to the east.
Photo © JM Frybourg – 241013-3414
Tags: Autriche Austria Österreich Carinthie Carinthia Kärnten Rosenbach Maria Elend train à vapeur locomotive à vapeur dampflok dampfzug steam train steam engine pont bridge viaduct ÖBB 93.1332 378.32 2-8-2-Tank 141T NBiK Nostalgiebahnen in Kärnten Rosentaler Dampfzüge Rosentalbahn mountain montagne border Slovenia Slovénie Karawanks Karavanke Karawanken Rosental Rosen Valley FarRail großen Suchagraben Großer Dürrenbach mountain stream torrent Drava River Drave Drau Danube Donau
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The mountain in the background belongs to the Karawanks range, the border between Austria and Slovenia (former Yugoslavia). The train travels between Rosenbach, the mouth of the Karawanks Tunnel (German: Karawankentunnel) tunnel linking Austria with Slovenia and Maria Elend, in the Rosen Valley. The single-track line was built as an important railroad link, but it is now almost unused, with major electrified itineraries going around it.
Photo © JM Frybourg – 241013-3348
Tags: Autriche Austria Österreich Carinthie Carinthia Kärnten Rosenbach Maria Elend train à vapeur locomotive à vapeur dampflok dampfzug steam train steam engine pont bridge ÖBB 93.1332 378.32 2-8-2-Tank 141T NBiK Nostalgiebahnen in Kärnten Rosentaler Dampfzüge Rosentalbahn mountain montagne border Slovenia Slovénie Karawanks Karavanke Karawanken Karawanks Tunnel Karawankentunnel Rosental Rosen Valley
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On the Rosenthalbahn (Rosen Valley Railway), the Rosenbach viaduct is the most remarkable bridge, however the line is now unused except for tourist operations and charter trains, and the maintenance cost is too high to keep running trains on it. The FarRail charters in October 2024 were probably the last trains to be seen on this magnificent bridge. The charter participants who paid for the steam train benefited from a total of 10 eastward runpasts on October 12 and 4 westbound in the fog on the morning of October 13, to allow for pictures under almost all possible angles.
The steam engine is the ex-ÖBB 93.1332 (formerly numbered 378.32), a 2-8-2-Tank built by the Wien Florisdorf factory in 1927 and designed for branch line services. It is now owned by NBiK, Nostalgiebahnen in Kärnten (Carinthia nostalgy railroads) and works mostly on the Rosentaler Dampfzüge tourist railway between Weizelsdorf and Ferlach and sometimes west of Weizelsdorf on the Rosentalbahn.
Photo © JM Frybourg – 241013-3261
Tags: Autriche Austria Österreich Carinthie Carinthia Kärnten Rosenbach train à vapeur locomotive à vapeur dampflok dampfzug steam train steam engine fog brouillard viaduc pont bridge viaduct viadukt Rosenbach-viadukt ÖBB 93.1332 378.32 2-8-2-Tank 141T NBiK Nostalgiebahnen in Kärnten Rosentaler Dampfzüge Rosentalbahn
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