Nariz del Diablo
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La Nariz del Diablo (English “devil's nose”, German “devil's nose”; originally Nariz de Pistishi ) is a 100 meter high prominent rocky promontory above the Rio Chanchán gorge in the area of the Pistishi parish of the canton Alausí in the province of Chimborazo in Ecuador .
The most striking section of the train connection from Riobamba (2,754 m) via Alausí (2,360 m) through several climatic zones of the country from the highlands of the Andes to Sibambe (1,806 m) and to the coast is located on this rock .
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To get over the rock, the tracks in the steep wall of the Devil's Nose were laid almost one above the other and connected by two switchbacks .
The line was built between 1899 and 1908 and was then considered a masterpiece of engineering. After various interruptions due to extreme weather during El Niño 1997/98 as well as the definitive interruption of the route by a landslide around 12 kilometers southwest of the Devil's Nose in 1999, the train for tourists was still operated under the Devil's Nose and turned there. After the reconstruction and complete renewal of the routes by 2012, exclusive trains have been running from Quito to the coast in several days since 2013. The trip to Alausi's devil's nose is still possible as a day trip in tourist trains.
The train ride on the roofs of the wagons was a special tourist attraction, which was banned in 2004. Due to the strong demand, more secure roof rides became possible again (see picture). After a fatal accident in 2007, these were finally banned.
Web links
- Volker Feser: Exploring Ecuador - Train to the Devil's Nose
- Mueren japoneses mientras pasean en tren , Diario HOY (Quito), February 17, 2007 (newspaper article about fatal accident on February 16, Spanish)
literature
- Volker Feser: Ecuador . 3rd edition, Verlag M. Müller, Erlangen 2005, ISBN 3-89953-189-2 .
Coordinates: 2 ° 14 ′ 34.4 " S , 78 ° 52 ′ 36.8" W.