Stuff

[The Rock Doctor]

Transportation on the Nile...

This post provides some context for future Ottoman activities in Africa...

General:

Historically, the Upper Nile was used extensively in support of the British-led war against the Mahdists of Sudan.  Rail and riverine transportation was developed to support the war effort.

In N6, this war has largely been butterflied away; the early Ottoman response was effective and there were just a few hundred or couple thousand casualties.  Most Sudanese had no idea anything happened.

Nonetheless, I'm assuming the general state of Nile transportation infrastructure is about the same as historical, though there are exceptions.  While the pressing need for war-related infrastructure is not present, the Ottomans do have an interest in extending control up the Nile, and the more peaceful environment allows this to happen in a generally orderly fashion.

Rail

There is a single standard gauge line running from Cairo to Khartoum.  There are sidings along the way, allowing for two way traffic, and depots in places like Aswan and Luxor. 

The route runs east and parallel to the Nile (though away from its floodplain) from Cairo to Wadi Haifa, then cuts southeast to avoid the Nile's "Great Bend".  It rejoins the river at the village of Abu Hamad and again runs parallel to the river until it reaches its present terminus at Khartoum, just completed in 1899. 

Other historical stretches of Sudanese rail have not yet been started in-game.  The east-west line from the Red Sea to the Kharga Oasis does not exist at this time (historically, it's a 1990s thing).

River

The Ottomans maintain two Type 0 river ports at Cairo and Luxor. 

In theory, the Nile is navigable by steamer as far south as historical Juba, South Sudan.  However, six major cataracts hamper and in some cases prevent travel for at least part of the year.

The First Cataract is just up-river of Aswan.  It is only passable in the summer flood season.  However, the Aswan Dam (TTL's Low Aswan Dam) will flood the cataract after completion in 1904.  At that point, a lock system at the dam will allow year-round passage up to Wadi Haifa, along the historical Egyptian/Sudanese border.

The second, third and fourth cataracts lie along the "Great Bend" in northern Sudan and are impassable outside of the summer flood season.  During the summer, however, the Second Cataract has a high flow rate but is passable.  The Third and Fourth are hazardous year-round, but navigable for two hundred kilometres between them.

The Fifth and Sixth Cataracts have swift water, but are passable year-round. 

The river is then navigable through and past Khartoum to the historical town of Malakal.  South of this, the river splits into a vast swamp, the Sudd, which is navigable but difficult to navigate given all the channels and dead-ends.   Fifty-seven thousand square kilometres in area and up to five hundred kilometres long, it will be a formidable challenge to chart.

The river then continues another two hundred kilometres or so to the historical trading post of Gondokoro (presently close to not-yet-founded Juba, South Sudan.

Historically, the British ran boats of 0.75 m draft up to Khartoum.  I'm assuming drafts of up to about

Tributaries:

-Blue Nile:  Navigable only to Al-Rusayris (AKA Ad-Damazin) during the summer.

-Sobat:  Branches off the Nile at Malakal, South Sudan and is navigable to Gambela, Ethiopia

-Al-Ghazal:  Summer only, distance unknown.