Local train enthusiasts couldn’t believe their eyes or good fortune on Tuesday morning, when an enormously long train, estimated to be up to a kilometre-and-a-half in length, passed through Donald, heading north, towards Mildura.

During a brief stop on its journey, the train stretched from the Hammill Street crossing, back through the rail yard, past the former station building, across the Campbell Street crossing, almost reaching the Sunraysia Highway crossing at the southern end of town.

There was no official word on what was the purpose of the train might be, but one theory was that is was a test run to check the suitability of the Mildura to Melbourne line to transfer freight, including produce from the fruit and vegetable growing areas to southern-based markets and the port of Melbourne.

This article appeared in The Buloke Times, 6 June 2023.