Ecuador's most famous railway journey. From Alausi station, the train climbs to the edge of a 500-metre cliff — the Nariz del Diablo, or Devil's Nose — then descends in a dramatic series of switchbacks, reversing three times to negotiate the near-vertical mountainside. The gorge scenery is extraordinary: dry mountain walls, condors overhead, and the vertiginous sense of nineteenth-century engineering pressed to its absolute limit.
The round trip from Alausi takes about two hours and deposits you back where you started. In the past you could ride on the roof; that is no longer permitted, but the views from the windows are still spectacular. The train runs on a schedule — check current times at Alausi station, as the service has been subject to cancellations. The station itself is one of the most attractive colonial-era railway stations in Ecuador.