Kalimari Desert is the last course in Mushroom Cup of Mario Kart 64. It is desert-themed and features trains that will flip you out if they are touched. These trains run across train-tracks that cross over the racing track. Sometimes the player must slow to a stop to wait for the train to pass by and then speed up again. The train-track is not limited, and the whole train-track is available to drive on (unless you're playing on the Mario Kart 7 version). Unless just messing around, this train-track is not a shortcut but instead costs time.
Another hazard on the track is the cacti. Crashing into them causes spin-outs, like Dry Dry Ruins and Thwomp Desert from Mario Kart Wii. The next hazards are the sand and the out-of-zone areas. If you go out into the sand, your kart will become increasingly slower. If you go out too far, you will go out-of-bounds and you will be reset back on the main course. Item Boxes only appear three times: at the beginning before the first railroad crossing; again right before the second railroad crossing; and finally halfway after the second railroad crossing.
This course reappears in Mario Kart 7 as a retro course, with additional glider ramps placed all around the course. It is the first course in Leaf Cup.
Trivia
- The engine on the train, has a "64" on it, and is a 4-4-0 engine or an American type steam locomotive. Engines of this wheel arrangement were used most common on American railroads during the 1800s and 1830s until 1928.
- The music is later used in Paper Mario for the train ride on the K64 Train.
- This course is called "Kara Kara Desert" in Japan.
- The railroad crossing sounds have been taken from real Japanese National Railway railroad crossings. They sound out of place in the North American version, as they use different electronic bells as well as mechanical bells. The Mario Kart 7 update replaces the crossing bells with North American bells.
- The course name is a play on the real-life Kalahari Desert found in southern Africa.
Map for this track
