Globe Trekker: Tough Trains

Globe Trekker adventurers travel the world's toughest trains in India, Vietnam, USA, Bolivia, Cuba, and even to north of Siberia. Host Zay Harding explores the history of the United States on an incredible 3,000-mile journey taking in epic scenery across America. From experiencing a 1830s steam locomotive to witnessing one of the greatest engineering feats of the 19th century, Zay takes us on a journey across four time zones and twelve states. Bolivia Once known as the Death-Train in land-locked Bolivia, Zay learns of Bolivia's historical treaties with Chile and Brazil that left it without access to coastal ports. On a new railway from Corumba to Santa Cruz, Zay finds that the safety record of the passenger train has improved. Zay then travels by freight train to heights of 4000m, using an oxygen mask, before ending his journey on the pacific coast. India On one of the oldest, longest, and biggest railway networks in the world, Zay takes an epic journey on India's tough trains. Covering 29 states, connecting 7,500 stations, with 71,000 miles of track, the railway serves a population of 1.2 billion people. Zay experiences the difficulties of Indian travel, trying to catch a local train to Motihari, which is overcrowded and very hot. Vietnam The death toll on the Vietnamese railway network accounts for 2% of all deaths in the country. That s 100 times worse than in India. While accidents are rife, Zay discovers the vital role the railway played in the history of Vietnam, particularly in war time, and begins his journey on the war torn Reunification Express, the main north-south railway. Russia s Ice Trains Siberia's Ice Trains are by far the toughest of the tough trains. Zay travels in winter to the far north of Siberia, deep inside the Arctic Circle on the world's most northerly railway lines. One thousand miles north of the trans-Siberian Railway is Russia's largest natural gas field on the edge of the Arctic Circle. Cuba s Sugar Train Host Ian Wright goes on a hair-raising and exciting train journey across Cuba, on the communist country s railway network that dates back to 1837. He travels the historic Hershey line, which connected the port of Havana with the sugar plantations, before heading to Santa Clara, the site of the rebel battle of 1958, where trains were derailed and sabotaged to win the Revolution. Ian ends his journey with a thrilling ride through the sugarcane fields on the front of a 1920 era, US-built steam locomotive.