A photography book by David Hitching, “Chinese Steam: The Last Years,” captures China’s stunning terrains and the romance of steam trains.
A steam locomotive winding through a mountainous landscape is an unforgettable sight.
For British photographer David Kitching, it’s a spectacle that doesn’t grow old — even if mainline steam trains are long gone in the UK.
Back in the early 1990s, train enthusiast Kitching first heard stories of China’s stunning terrains and incredible steam trains.
Now 62, Kitching has been enamored by steam rail since he was a boy and has fond childhood memories of the railway.
“I would join my friends watching the steam trains from a convenient footbridge over the local line,” he recalls.
“By the age of 9 years, I would head off after school to the local locomotive shed where we would spend many happy hours climbing on the locomotives and dodging the shed foreman.”
So when Kitching heard about opportunities to photograph Chinese steam locomotives — he was thrilled.
“I really missed the experience of mainline steam trains after they finished in Britain in 1968.”
He seized the chance to witness the might of a steam engine once more — and to experience a different culture.
On his first trip, Kitching headed to northeast China and captured coal mines, narrow-gauge lines and unforgettable landscapes.
He returned to the country several times over the subsequent years, always with his camera in hand — taking fantastic photographs and forging lasting connections.
Kitching’s early visits to China were as part of organized tours. Later, he coordinated freelance visits, often traveling with friends or his son.
