Freight Train Hopping in West Africa (Dangerous)

We’re train surfing the longest train in the world. The Mauritania Railway. The Sahara Freight crosses 700km of desert (430 miles) in West Africa, picking up iron ore from the mining town of Zouerat, and dropping it off at the coastal town of Nouadibou since 1963. This Sahara railway is one of the most extreme in the world. It’s been called Africa’s Worst Train, and for train surfing, it’s the ride of a lifetime. The Mauritania Railway is one of a kind. Just sneaking into the train was an adventure enough. Taking a public bus to Zouerat and trying to negotiate and navigate to the right location. There is no train schedule, just a rough 2 hour window when people expect to see the train. Also, the journey can take anywhere from 16 to 24 hours to complete. Locals ride in the cars as a fast and easy (yeah, believe that) way to cross into the interior of the country from the coast. While where are no clear rules whether it is legal or not, it is tolerated, and has become a common method of transportation across