12 ACROSS THE GOKTEIK VIADUCT
02 A disused wooden
track can be seen as the
train crosses the viaduct
03 Locals selling snacks
onboard the train as it
passes by the villages0203One of the most exciting train rides in
Asia begins from Mandalay to Lashio
via the Gokteik Viaduct. The 15-hour
train journey crosses from the Mandalay
Region into Shan State, the largest state
in Myanmar.
Built in 1900 by the Pennsylvania
Steel Company and with parts shipped
in from the United States of America, the
Gokteik Viaduct is quite an engineering
masterpiece. Standing at 335 feet high, it
is the highest railway track in Myanmar
and was considered an engineering feat in
its time. The nature and scenery along the
track is more than words can describe.
Gokteik has always been a bit of a
mystery in my mind from a young age.
I still remember when our family lived
in Shan State before we migrated to
Mandalay. At the time, my dad would
bring us to Mandalay during the school
holidays and he would tell us stories of the
Gokteik Viaduct whenever we passed by,
but I never got the chance to get close to it.
Recently a friend told me that the
Burmese government had opened the
old railway for sightseeing, so I went on
my Gokteik adventure, first by car then
by train. On our first trip we decided to
explore the area by driving from Pyin OoThe Gokteik Viaduct is the
highest railway track in
Myanmar and considered an
engineering feat in its timeRoman Korzh/Flickr