Riding the Iron Ore Train In Mauritania: My Experience
The Experience
Waking up on a blissful Tuesday summer morning in Zouerat after a long 13-hour sleep, I was ready to tuck in for the long evening ahead. The first order of business when I wake up is traditionally coffee, so my new friends and I decided to go on the hunt. One shop to another found that all of the coffee machines seemed to not be working. Great…
With no coffee in hand and the time looming closer and closer to departure, I guess I would have to survive without coffee. The driver picked us up and off, and off we went to the station in Zouerat (where we thought the station was).
As you can read about in my previous post, this was the wrong location…
Figuring out that this was the wrong station, we had to haul it over to F’Derick and quickly. The Iron Ore Train seems to leave anywhere between 12-3 pm out of Zouerat, but it is always advisable to show up at 12 in case it leaves right at that time.
The driver hustled, and I mean truly hustled, to get us there by 12:30 pm, only to find no train in the vicinity. What does this mean? Did we miss it?
We waited and waited and waited until, just out of the corner of our eye, we saw a magnificent locomotive approaching the station. It happened to stop just in front (about 300 meters) of where we parked, so we packed up shop and took a short drive over.
The exact marker is KM mark 628
Reading online through a few sources, it is nicer to get a train car nearer to the front of the train. This is due to the wind blowing loose iron ore off the top of the trains. I would recommend cars 3-9, but we ended up in car number 9. With the help of my new friends, we loaded up our belongings for a long night
Tip: buy plastic wrap for your bags in Atar so your stuff doesn’t end up all filthy like mine does.
We climbed up on board as quickly as possible, ready to get on our way. A moment went through my mind as if it was one of those instagram reels saying, “We’re alive, woooo!”. A feeling I will never ever forget. I digress a bit later. About an hour later, we see a tourist running over to our carriage, throwing all of his stuff into the carriage in front. We told him he should join us, and so he did
Moments later, the train began moving (2:30 pm). Every one of the four of us onboard was excited over the moon. Planning the iron ore train was a lot of work, and it had finally paid off!
It was hot, and the next 4 hours were going to be filled with the Sahara Dessert sun. Naturally, due to my lack of planning, we had no sunscreen, which meant keeping my long sleeves on. But the beauty made up for it, we passed by an unbelieable amount of camels, but the strangest part was how we would be 50 km from the local town and see a single shepherd with his camel.
Joke: we were thinking, if for some reason we fall off, do we think the shepherds have Netflix in their little huts?
Tip: Bring lots of water, at least 6 liters of water per person.
As the day progressed, laughs were being shared, stories were being shared, and it was as if all of the world's responsibilities had vanished from our heads. The first ride from Zouerat to Choum was about 4.5 hours (depending on how fast your train driver was), and we eventually pulled in as the sun was beginning to set into Choum.
Tip: The train stops in Choum for 10-15 minutes maximum. Jump on quickly. Sometimes it doesn’t stop.
We bid farewell to the new friends who had taken the journey to Zouerat with me (they wanted to go and visit the Unesco sites the next day) and continued on the treacherous part of the journey. This next part of the journey from Choum-Nouadhibou is a dangerous journey. Crossing over 400 km, with no roads around the whole way and rocking carriages. It was alright, though, as I still had the fellow American with me in the carriage. Taking this train along,e I am not so sure about…
Tip: Do not fall off…
So, let’s discuss the elephant in the room before we discuss the next part of the journey. Where did we use the toilet? Once you get on the train, you are going to want to designate a corner of the train car to piss in and another corner to stash your stuff in. Usually, you will sit/sleep in the middle part of the car, meaning you will have to go back to pee (back because of the wind). It is crucial that you do not stand up in the middle of the night to go to the back of the car. Try to have both hands and feet on the iron ore if you can. If you fall off, that’s it; you are probably dead, so unless you have great balance, do not attempt this.
Choum-Nouadhibou
As we steamed our way out of Choum, the sunset was coming into full effect. It was a beautiful feeling, just me, this guy, and two locals in the very front of the train, traversing through the Saharan Dessert. This was the time when we really took out our phones properly to get some great pictures of the sunset. We attempted to stay off our phones throughout the journey, but this was an unforgettable moment. The sun began to die down, the weather went from hot to breezy, and we were beginning to feel peckish.
Tip: make sure you bring simple food for the train. Make sure the food is wrapped.
Tucking in for the night, we had some food and laid up while we looked at the stars. No lights around, no people around, just two Americans on a train looking up at the stars. If I was with a girlfriend, this would have been the most romantic thing in the world.
The night progressed, and the weather turned cold. It is really cold and really quick. Every now and again, we would see a shepherd with his camel outside of his little tent in the middle of nowhere, but that was the only sign of life. My new friend was getting cold, and he didn’t bring a jacket, so I gave up my only blanket to him as he fell fast asleep for 5 hours.
Tip: I will put a full packing list in another post, but make sure to bring lots of blankets. Even with a winter coat in summer, I was freezing.
The journey continued, but my teeth began chattering; I was freezing cold. We passed by a very small town at around 2 am and saw a couple riding the train in the other direction (that looked even more miserable).
As the night progressed, I curled up in a little ball in the back of the car (not on this piss side) to attempt to shield myself from the wind. Occasionally, we would see police checking the tops of cars for people (as this is an illegal train to ride). If you see this during your journey, do not stand up!
The first light came just around 4:45 am on a cold Mauritania morning. I looked down at my hands and realized that they were all black, my face was black, and even my yeah… from going to the toilet…
Around Km mark number 22, the train came to a brief halt. This is where we saw taxis chasing, hoping to get a passenger ride from a tourist to town.
We had made it through the night!
Tip: This is where you get off. Do not keep going to the port, as you will be arrested and have to pay a bribe to be released.
A sense of Euphoria filled the veins as we flagged down a taxi and headed off to Hotel Delphine; more on that in the next post!
Final Thoughts
Taking this train isn't for everyone, or even for most people. The potential danger involved being on top of a train for 17+ hours and having no proper toilet takes away the comfort of a modern civilization. However, if you are an adventurous person, this train is one of the most incredible experiences I have had, and I highly recommend it to anyone thinking about it. It can be done alone, but I recommend bringing a mate. Be prepared to get dirty, and enjoy sleeping under the stars!
Comments