Life's A Hitch: Train Surfing In The Sahara Desert

By Crystal Chung @crystalkchung

AN INTREPID photographer hitches a ride through the Sahara Desert on one of the world’s longest trains - with her surfboard in tow

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A train surfer prepares to jump between carriages

The stunning photos were taken in Mauritania during a two month expedition at the tail end of 2015 by professional photographer Jody MacDonald.

The 39-year-old rode across the Sahara - which takes up an astonishing 90% of the country - in open-top carriages full of iron ore.

The train is one of the longest in the world

Jody, who was born in Canada, spent months of meticulous planning before jumping onboard the epic freight train.

She started her journey in the capital of Nouakchott, before travelling to the north west area of Mauritania called Nouadhibou.

Industry: the train is used to transport huge quantities of iron ore across Mauritania

Jody said: “The train is one of the world’s longest. It’s an iron ore train that comes out of a mine in the north and goes to Nouadhibou on the north west coast.

“From there we searched for surf and shipwrecks on the coast."

During the ride, MacDonald and her team were buffeted by a huge sandstorm, with winds of up to 150km/h which she said “felt like sandpaper”.

Jody’s incredible pictures showcase her exploration through the vast expanses of the Sahara

“I thought my skin was going to scrape off, because of the rain and blowing sand,” she added.

“The gusts were so violent, it pinned me to the side of the train truck and made opening the truck door impossible.

A train surfer scrambles down the side of the train

“After a few minutes, the wind died down and I was able to open the door. When I got inside there was glass everywhere. Our back window had completely imploded.

The Sahara Desert takes up more than 90% of Mauritania's landmass

"It was soaking wet inside too. Our guide had been sitting in the back and had cuts all over his body from the glass."

Once they got to the coast, MacDonald explored the beaches for shipwrecks among the surf.

A group of camels mill around together in the Sahara's sandy wastes

The adventure was the culmination of a lifelong dream for the professional photographer.

She said: “When I was young, I used to look through National Geographic magazines and dream of adventures like this.

Jody and her team were forced to hunker down to shelter from the violent sand storms

"Train hopping thorough the Sahara on one of the world’s longest trains. This was one of those rare times in life where the expectations of your dreams and reality converge and it plays our how you imagined.”