The 3ft 6in gauge Taltal Railway ran 92.5 miles inland from the Chilean port of Taltal, across the arid Atacama desert, carrying the considerable tonnage of nitrate from a varying number of nitrate processing plants, although it also carried gold, silver and copper in much lesser quantities. Whilst very profitable for much of its life, the Taltal probably would never have come to notice if it hadn’t remained entirely steam worked until its closure in 1977, and used the ultimate dinosaurs of the steam age, Kitson-Meyer articulateds, with considerable success. Told here is the official history of this interesting railway, and its locomotives. 64 well produced pages. Numerous B&W photographs and illustrations, plus maps. Paperback. Trackside Publications.

This book is dedicated to the memory of Christopher Walker, the proprietor of Trackside Publications, who unexpectedly died before it was actually in print. Chris loved the railways of South America, Cuba especially, and was a larger than life character in every way; he will be greatly missed by all who knew him, including us at Camden.