The West Sumatra Coal Railway

West Sumatra has Indonesia's most isolated and spectacular main line. Built to serve the coal mine at Sawahlunto, it was operated in three distinct sections. The first ran from the port of Teluk Bayer through Padang to Kayutanam at the base of the mountains. From there a rack section climbed through jungle covered gorges to Padang Panjang before descending inland to Batu Tabal on the shores of lake Singkarak. Finally, it ran through relatively flat countryside to Solok and on to Sawahlunto. Branches ran from Lubukalung on the coastal section north beyond Pariaman and from Padang Panjang to Bukit Tinggi and on to Pajakumbu. Steam finished by the late 1970s on the adhesion section but hung on until about 1984 on the rack.