The Santander to Alar del Rey Railway Line in Alar del Rey, Spain

According to Atlas Obscura, Spain's Santander-to-Alar del Rey railway is a masterpiece of nineteenth-century mountain engineering. Opened in eighteen sixty-six, it climbs from the northern coast through the dramatic Cantabrian Mountains to the flat plains of the Meseta Central. The line's most remarkable section is the Rampe de Bárcena, where track climbs three hundred nineteen meters over just seven kilometers through three remarkably engineered tunnels—what historians call a 'triple horseshoe' because of the tight spiraling route. English engineer Alfred S. Gee designed this ingenious alternative to cable inclines used elsewhere. Famously, the fourteen powerful locomotives built for the line were never paid for. Today, fully electrified and still in commercial operation, the railway showcases the Cantabrian peaks and historic viaducts. But its future is uncertain: a planned high-speed rail project threatens to make this century-old line obsolete.

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