It's already mid-September, but still hot and humid in Tokyo. Cool mountains are beckoning me, but I have a lot of things to do in this urban heat island at this moment. What else can I do?
I just remembered that one of my blog readers kindly sent to me a photo of a beautiful train in Europe. That train is operated on a mountainous route across Switzerland and Italy. I feel cooler just by looking at it. As you know, the Bernina line is a mountain climbing railway opened in 1908 by Bernina Railway Company. It's currently a part of Rhatische Railway, which has a 384 kilometers line network. Connecting St. Moritz and Tirano, the operating length is 61 kilometers. The route is single and electrified. The gauge size is 1,000 millimeters and the electric system is 1,000 V DC overhead catenary. That's quite easy to remember, right? The Bernina line crosses the Bernina Pass at 2,253 meters above sea level. The maximum inclination of the route is 70 per mil.
In the meantime, Rhatische Railway ties up with Hakone-tozan Railway in Japan, as two railways have things in common. They're mountain climbing railways with very steep tracks. Many tourists are using these lines. As a token of friendship, Hakone-tozan Railway operates Bernina-colored trains, named Bernina I and Bernina II, on the line. I'm specifically fond of Bernina I train (see the photo below), as its red-colored bodies with yellow and silver-colored stripes are very sophisticated and definitely my cup of tea.
