Operatons ceased on the MK&P and Agusta Statio closed in 2007. Since that time the rails had remained silent but untouched. But this summer it looked as though the Missouri Kansas & Pacific N scale layout was about to meet the scrappers' torch and be headed to the dumpster. The Augusta Station building was rented to new tenants and the layout needed to be removed. As a result of miscommunication scavengers removed structures from the layout. The buildings were returned, but damage had been done. Just days before the MK&P layout was to be dismantled the cavalry arrived in the form of a group from the Route 66 Railfan Visitors Center in Pacific, Missouri. They divided the layout into sections and shipped it in an 18-wheeler to Pacific. The 30 foot long mountain ridge was moved as one section. A bit of the track popped loose, but no cracking plaster was observed. They estimated the 30 foot section weighed about 3/4 of a ton. I know the bench work weighed very little. Which means most of weight was Hydrocal. I knew a lot of Hydrocal went into those mountains in the six months I was building them, but I had lost count of the number of 96 pound bags. LIttle wonder there were no cracks in the plaster. The layout is currently in storage while the Pacific group is negotiating for a building and seeking funding to reassemble the layout as part of a railroad park centered around the former train station in downtown Pacific. The MK&P has escaped the scrapper's torch and a fallen flag may be raised again.

This is a shot of one of the Union Pacific's unit coal trains which daily run on the former Moffat Route in the Colorado Rockies. It has been a long time, seven months since my last Journal entry. Five of those months were spent in Colorado working in Rocky Mountain National Park. I was eager to spend a summer living in Colorado after an absence of ten years. It turned out my body was not as eager to move from below sea level to nearly 12, 000 feet above sea level. The first two months were lost to medical issues. As a consequence, I did not do as much railfanning as I anticipated. But I did manage photographing in some new locations and riding what must be the last tourist train in Colorado which I had not rode on before.

My laptop also developed issues of its' own leading to so much frustration that I finally had to replace it. Those laptop ills and setting up a new machine left neither time nor enthusiasm for Journal entries. Now I am back in Death Valley where the breathing is a lot easier. New software has been installed, old files transferred, and I am sorting and editing downloads from my digital SLR. New Journal entries and new photo albums will be coming.

Posted by The Station Master at 12:01 AM CST

Updated: Tuesday, 6 December 2011 11:35 PM CST

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Foam insulation board has seen at least limited use on model railroad layouts for more than a couple decades. But most often it had been stacked wedding cake style to create hills or mountains. In recent years use of extruded foam insulation board has been expanding. With the Missouri Kansas & Pacific layout at Augusta Station we demonstrated ways in which the foam board can be used not only for scenery but also as a structural material in the construction of bench work. There is still much room for further experimentation

A few months ago I came across a discussion in the Yahoo Group for Small Layouts. One of the Group members was using foam board to create the backdrop for his layout. I used foam in a small area of the MK&P layout to create the backdrop where space was limited. I used one inch thick foam laminating a couple layers and then sculpting a bit with a Shurform tool. I finished the forested hillsides by gluing Woodland Scenics' clumped foliage to the roughly shaped foam sheets. I also added a few rock castings. The Small Layout Group member took a different approach. He used several layers of thinner foam board and then colored the foam with paint. He also used the white beaded foam board rather than the more dense extruded pink foam. He took advantage of the rough beaded surface of his foam to give the painted surface greater texture.

I had some concern when making my backdrop the nearly vertical face of the backdrop would be  so obvious as to detract from the scene. Strong elements in the foreground, however, diverted the viewer's  attention away from the backdrop allowing the mind to accept the lack of depth in the background.

When buiding the Santa Alicia, Harrytown & Pacific layout, Mike Blumensaadt, used techniques similar to mine. But in his layout which is featured in the May 2011 issue of Model Railroader magazine, Mike used used a foam profile as the background for his entire layout not merely for a small segment. I believe an advantage of this approach to creating a backdrop is it can be accomplished with scenery techniques and materials we commonly employ in the rest of our layout. It does not require skills with artist's brushes needed for creating painted backgrounds. The most effective backdrops might be a layered approach combining both foam and painting.

Posted by The Station Master at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Tuesday, 26 April 2011 1:34 PM CDT

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We've seen "TRONA" on covered hopper models, but Trona is also a place.  Ridgecrest, California is the nearest town of any size to the west of Death Valley. The highway to Ridgecrest is a back way used by a few to access the National Park.  I had never been to Ridgecrest and not having anything in particular to do on a recent day off, I decided to drive that way. I knew the highway passed through Trona, California, but all that I had heard was it is an ugly place which smells bad. As I approached Trona I saw the large structures of a factory and getting closer noted the presence of covered hoppers. As I drove through town I saw hopper cars moving in the yard and then glimpsed the locomotives shoving the cars. What a surprise! No one had mentioned trains in Trona. Ridgecrest would have to wait. I was going to watch trains.

 It turns out Trona, California, not only has trains it has a special claim. The Trona Railway Company with 30 miles of mainline is the shortest regulated railroad in the United States. At the time I wasn't aware of anything other than the train was headed in the direction of the exit to the yard and might be heading out of town. I urgently wanted to get ahead of that train. An approaching train yeilds more interesting photos than the rear of a train heading into the distance. I managed to get ahead of the train where the tracks cross the highway. I need not have been concerned about the train leaving town. The crew was sorting cars and shuttled back and forth through the crossing several times. Then the train disappeared into the plant.

After some waiting, it seemed as though there might be a prolonged pause before the train would leave town. I decided to take a chance I could continue my trip to Ridgecrest and might still get back to Trona before the train's departure. Just outside of town I noticed a parked truck and three men with camera tripods beside the highway where it paralleled the tracks. They had to be railfans. These fellows might know something useful, so I turned around and parked my vehicle alongside them. Two of the fellows were from the Pacific Northwest and the third was a local. Their location put them in an excellent position to photograph the train coming around a long curve with the Westend plant in the background. My equipment would be no match for these fellows' long lenses, but I might still get a worthwhile shot. Once again I decided to abandon a trip to Ridgecrest and instead wait for the train to come our way. A couple hours later I was out of time and no train had yet appeared. I would have another opportunity to return five days later. But now I turned back toward Death Valley.

On my second trip I arrived in Trona before lunch, but no train was in evidence. I came across a museum in the company's former guest house. Trona was established as a company town. This extended even to issuing a scrip which was to be used in the company store rather than US currency. The guest house satisfied the need for a hotel. Many company and community atifacts are exhibited in several rooms, each displaying objects from a different aspect of community life. It is a well done exmple of a community museum.

No train was yet to be seen or heard. I decided to have an early lunch while I waited.  On the recommendation of the museum ladies, I crossed the street to a family Mexican restaurant. It was located in what in better days had been the lobby of a movie theater. The industrial base of Trona seems to be carrying on in pretty good condition, but the retail base of the town appears to be near total collapse. Formerly there were five gas stations, but now only two. And on my first visit the pumps at one were closed down. The remaining station had no gas the sell on my second day in town. Pretty difficult to hold onto your customer base if product availability is not reliable. 

My hopes for some sign of railroad activity were still not realized. I decided to take the risk of missing a train and drive on down to Ridgecrest. There I spotted a museum in the former USO building. Ridgecrest is home to the China Lake Naval Ordinance Base. It is a different military today, however, with no need for a large USO facility. This is a museum in the making and has few displays. The woman in charge, however, was very helpful. She told me about a house in town built around a caboose.. She also gave me directions on how to get to Searles Station where the Trona Railway interchanges with the Union Pacific. But I felt I did not have time to adequately follow up on either location. I still hoped I might be able to catch shots of a train leaving Trona.

Unappily, there was no train in sight when I arrived back in Trona. It was still a bit early to give up and make the return trip to Death Valley. The Trona Pinnacles is a designated National Landmark a few miles south of Trona. The railroad tracks go through the area. I decided to explore the Pinnacles for potential photo locations. I just might be in a decent position to take photos should a train pass southbound from Trona. Getting to the Pinnacles requires traversing five or six miles of dirt road. The road is variously mud flats, loose sand, or rocky. Don't even think about trying to get there if it has rained in the past month

After poking around the Pinnacles, it was time to head back for Death Valley. On the way back from the Pinnacle formations I paused where the dirt road crosses the tracks. The location is known as Magnesium and is the site of a stub-ended siding. Several covered and open hopper cars are stored at this location. I stopped to get a few close-up shots of individual cars.

Justt as I was getting into my car I caughts sight of a train approaching. No time to seek a better location, I grabbed my camera and fired off what I could as the train passed. It is a long climb out of Trona and the Searles valley to the connection with the Union Pacific. This was a long train of covered hoppers and open coal cars with seven locomotives on the point.

Another week and another trip; I'm still hoping to get photos of a train coming around that big curve with the chemical plant in the background. But when I arrive in Trona not only is there no train working in the yard, the gate is closed across the yard exit. Not encouraging! Well, this is an opportunity to seek out the caboose house and Searles Station at Ridgecrest. The lady at the museum was a little off in her characterization of the house built around a caboose. It reality it appears the caboose is a passenger car. The interior of the house is accessible only by appointment for group tours. The exterior is a bit disappointing. Let's find the Searles Station.

Traveling south on highway 395 from Ridgecrest I sighted the old roadbed of the abanoned Southern Pacific line which once extended north to the Owens Valley. There it met the narrow guage line preserved today at the museum in Laws, California which I visited a couple years ago. The old grade leads to a broad valley where I found the junction of the Trona Railway and the Union Pacific. This is Searles Station. I do not know if there was ever an actual station, but there is still a water tank left over from from the steam era. The Trona RR tracks peal off in a broad curve from the interchange tracks. The UP has three siding tracks and a wye at Searles to service interchange with the Trona Railway. A mile or two of the old northbound mainline has been retained to store several excess freight cars.

My first visit when I discovered the Trona Railway was early  in the week. The railfans I encountered on that trip to Trona had said trains ran Monday through Friday and as needed on Saturdays. Fridays are frequently my day off and I had hoped to see trains. After twice failing to see trains operting on Friday visits any future visits I make will be earlier in the week. If industrial modeling and desert scenery excites you, the Trona Railway shortline might make an interesting subject for a bedroom layout. The mining operations differ from most and could be accomodated in a compact space.

Posted by The Station Master at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Friday, 25 March 2011 9:04 PM CDT

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Tony Koester mentions in his "Trains of Thought" column in the January 2011 issue of Model Railroader magazine that he kept his track level in yards and towns. I believe this is a pretty common practice among layout builders. The obvious reason, as Tony says, is to prevent cars from rolling away. When you spot a car on an industry's track you want it to stay there. Finding cars out on the mainline which have left a yard on their own is disconcerting to say the least. One of the  first steps contractors take when preparing a site for erecting a new building is to level the ground. It is just easier and more economical to build something on a flat area. With the concentration of buildings in a town or city we are predisposed when planniing our layouts to think of towns and cities as being flat. It would certainly be appropriate if you are modeling a town such as where I grew up in northwestern Iowa.

But even in northwest Iowa there are exceptions to the flat city syndrome. My oldest sister lived for years in Fort Dodge, Iowa, located along the Des Moines River  valley. While much of this small city is relatively flat several areas decidedly are not. If you were to travel across Iowa to the northeastern corner, the city of Dubuque has a lot of near verticle terrian. This is true of many other towns and cities located along the Mississippi River. The Manufacturers Railroad in Saint Louis was still doing some street running when I first lived there. I witnessed first hand the MRR climbing some pretty significant (if short) grades to serve their customers. Trains going from the MRR shops to the Anheiser Busch brewery today still have a hill to climb. During my many years living in Colorado I witnessed the most extreme examples of towns with considerable elevation changes.

There are layouts with a city having more than one level. Most frequently it is limited to a second level with buildings perched atop a retaining wall. Commonly, these overlook a yard. There are seldom tracks on this second, higher level. It functions largely as a backdrop for railroad action on a lower level. Sometimes this higher level hides staging tracks under it. Over the years I occasionly have seen urban layouts with a city having more than one active level. With these as inspiration I began designing and building the Missouri Kansas & Pacific layout.

The former mining town of Night Hawk was located at the highest end of track on the layout. Buildings were located on radically differing levels. This was inspired by the old mining towns of Central City and Blackhawk. The small yard at Night Hawk was slightly elevated above the mainline and is out of sight to left in this picture. The mainline ran on a single level within the town, but buildings were placed on widely varying levels. In fact, with the exception of a few miners' cabins, no two buildings were at the exact same elevation. The nearby village of Alta Vista was located on the crest of a ridge and the buildings there were placed on three only slightly differing levels. The mine building to the left is on the lowest level at the end of a rail spur. The commercial buildings sit at the highest level on a raised area behind a low retaining wall. Almost hidden by the trees at the extreme right at a mid-level are former miners cabins

Fort Dodge, Iowa, in the Des Moines River valley was the inspiration for the town of Jefferson on the MK&P layout.  The Illinois Central laid it's tracks in Fort Dodge on three terraces cut into the hillside above the river. At the highest level tracks served a few customers. The mainline, depot, freight house, and yard were on the next level down.  The shops and roundhouse were on the third terrace.Jefferson, a ficticious town, was located in the Missouri River valley. I laid out Jefferson in the same pattern but added a fourth, lower level for a loop of the shortline which occupied the adjacent penninsula. The shortline was scheduled to serve a soy bean oil plant under construction in Jefferson. In similar fashion, Fort Dodge was served by the Chicago Northwestern in addition to the IC.

Taking several cues from Saint Louis, Mound City was the MK&P city on the west bank of the Mississippi River . As is often the case with layout construction even though the basic design concept remained the same details of the plan evolved with the construction. One day when the central elements were all in place I decided to count the number of levels. To my surprise there were seven different elevations. Some differences were subtle and others significant, but there were seven in all. Only one level, the downtown business district did not have track on it. Rocky outcrops and a ravine sliced into the hillside below the brewery. Similar ravines interupt the urban landscape all over Saint Louis and other cities.  Some levels were defined by retaining walls and other were not. While retaining walls could not be avoided, an effort was made to vary their height and placement. Buildings and vegetation in front of the retaining walls partially obscured them. By such devices the extensive walls were made less evident. The scene in the photograph below shows buildings on four of the seven levels. Because of the concentration of structures of various heights on each level you are not immediately aware of the changes in elevation.

There you have it, four towns and cities on one layout each with variable topographies. I did maintain flat tracks wherever I expected to park railcars. But I also looked for opportunities to add visual and operations interest to urbanized areas on the layout. Raising some tracks up can make them more easily accessible when uncoupling cars. Changes in elevation make the layout seem larger. Crews switching various industries may have more of a sense they are traveling from one place to another rather than merely solving a switching puzzle. The railroads of this country pass through many towns and cities with flat or nearly flat topography. Phoenix, for example is the most nearly flat of any large city I have seen. Many others, however, have a much more varied landscape. One of the advantages offered by using extruded foam insulation board as the layout base is the ease with which  variations in elevation can be acheived. The foam board is typically available in thicknesses ranging from 1/2 inch to 2 inches. The incline starters available from Woodland Scenics easily move your track from one level to the other. I urge everyone to take a look at urban areas in the region you are modeling to see opportunities to add variety and interest to your towns.

Posted by The Station Master at 11:15 PM CST

Updated: Tuesday, 15 February 2011 7:59 PM CST

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What better way to spend a vacation than riding trains? Once again I returned to Colorado in August, but this time I drove on past Durango and headed to Chama, New Mexico. The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic was celebrating its' 40th year of operations with special events. Plans for this anniversary got thrown a big curved ball when the Lobato trestle caught fire and suffered severe damage. The C&TS keeps coming back, but it does seem to be the Colorado tough luck tourist train. Even though they have suffered thousands of cancelled reservations trains have continued to run on a truncated route between the station at the top of Cumbres Pass and Antonito, Colorado.

I must confess to having considered cancelling my reservations. But I persisted, frequently checking the CT&S website and calling them a few times. I was not greatly reassured, however. The website carried reports on the trestle damage and revised operating schedules, but nothing appeared about changes in planned anniversry activities. This was strange considering the Lobato Trestle figured hugely in some events. Those answering my calls were not forthcoming either. But I went forward with my plans and drove into Chama after spending the night in Pagosa Springs

I entered the ticket office in the Chama station unsure of what to expect. I had reserved a spot on Goose No. 5 for that afternoon and a ride on the "working freight" for the following day. As I suspected, my rides would start at Cumbres Pass. I was told a bus would transport us from Chama to Cumbres. I was given my ticket for the Goose, but the agent said I could not have my ticket for the next day's freight train until after 2:30 PM. I pointed out my ride on the Goose started before 2:30 making it impossible for me to be on hand to get my train tickets. I was told I could pick them up the next morning before the bus departed. Okay . . . . ?

I was told the bus which would take me up to Cumbres for the Goose trip would depart at 12:30 PM and I should be there about 15 minutes early. This left time for some photography around the rail yard and for lunch. I returned to the Chama station a little before noon. A special afternoon train which was to run from Chama to Lobato was on the tracks, but no bus was in sight. I took a few more photos while I waited. When no bus was in sight by 12:15, I headed to the ticket office. On the way I encountered another gentleman headed in the same direction. He was also there to meet the 12:30 bus. However, in a conversation with one of the crewmen for the afternoon train he discovered the bus had already left!

A tense conversation ensued with ladies in the ticket office. The woman who seemed to be in charge got on the radio and contacted people at Cumbres Pass. The Goose would be departing in 15 minutes we were told and it was up to us to get there. Thanks alot! I jumped in the car with the gentleman and his wife and we raced up to Cumbres. The Goose was still there! We hustled aboard. But then another radio call from Chama was received. It seemed a family including three young children had appeared also looking for the long-departed bus. The children were in tears and the parents were frantic. Would the Goose wait? Yes, crying children do not make for favorable newspaper photos. With the family on board, the Goose was ready to get under way. But no, now we had to wait for the arrival of a train which, if things had been on schedule, we presumably would have met at a distant siding as part of the advertised "parade of trains". Once the train pulled into Cumbres the Goose finally got under way nearly an hour behind schedule.

With the wheels finally turning our troubles were behind us. It was a beautiful afternoon in Colorado's high country. We met a special train from Antonito filled with dignataries of New Mexico and Colorado state governments. And we had several run-bys with the Goose. We all returned happy to Cumbres station for a barbeque dinner.

My unpleasant experiences with C&TS failing customer service were not quite over, however. When I appeared next morning at the station in Chama to pick up my tickets for the second day's train trip, the ticket agent could not find my reservation. It was discovered after a few minutes my reservation had been left with the previous day's trip. With my reservation reinstated, I was given my ticket. I was told to wait for a bus up to Cumbres, but after my experience of the day before I was not about to have anything of that. Besides, it was early and I would have the opportunity to get some photos at Cumbres.

It was a clear, crisp morning up on Cumbres Pass and crews were busy shuttling locomotives around in preparation for the day's trains. Because this locoation was never meant to be an area for servicing locomotives, dumping ashes and the like have to be accomplished in a makeshift manner. I'm sure crews will be happy to see Lobato trestle restored and they can return to the conveniences of Chama yard. The Goose, requires no such attention to start its's day, sat quietly by the side. By the time the bus arrived from Chama, our "working freight" was ready and we embarked on a day of photo run-bys. The weather was not so kind to us after lunch as it had been in the morning. Clouds rushed in, the temperature plunged, and it rained. A couple more run-bys were done trying to dodge the raindrops, but then we high-tailed it across the sagebrush flats for Antonito.

With the exception of the second afternoon's rain and cold everything went smoothly once we hit the rails. My only disappointment there was the lack of promised switching by the "working freight train." I heard something of possible management changes for CT&S next season. Hopefully that may bring improvements in things before the trains depart. Spending this much time on the Cumbres and Toltec route and doing the photo run-bys has given me a new appreciation for the C&TS. Previously, I have always favored the Durango & Silverton route. I have felt scenery of the D&S eclipsed that of the C&TS and I have always wondered why many people favor the Chama train over the Durango train. While the scene of peaks towering over a tiny train moving through a deep, narrow river valley is awesome, Cumbres & Toltec trains demonstrate another hallmark of Colorado narrow guage railroads. Accessing the mineral riches of the Rockies was dependent upon rails climbing mountain passes. The C&TS tracks are the last place we can see narrow guage locomotives still performing this important accomplishment.

We were met in Antonito by a bus to take everyone back to Chama. The bus driver let me off at Cumbres where I had left my car.  I moved quickly to my car and headed for Alamosa where I was to spend the next two nights. In Alamosa I had a ticket for another ride on the Rio Grande Scenic train operated by the San Luis & Rio Grande Railroad. Even though I have made the trip over La Veta Pass before, including the inaugural season, it has been a couple years since my last visit and new equipment has been added. Even though it was not part of my thinking when I made my resrvation, it was fitting I would follow my ride over Cumbres Pass on narrow guage rails with a ride over La Veta Pass on standard guage rails. Even though mountain railroads follow water level routes along streams, sooner or later they will need to scale a mountainside to climb over a mountain pass. Sadly, trains no longer seek out Boreas Pass, Alpine Tunnel, nor even Tennessee Pass. But the C&TS and the SL&RG keep that tradition alive.

I learned before leaving Chama, the Rio Grand Scenic had run of special photo train while I was riding the RGS Goose. Somehow, amongst all the promotions of concert trains and the like, this event had never appeared in my email notices from Alamosa. If a photo train becomes an annual event, I will certainly want to put it on my calendar. Things have changed since my first ride in Rio Grande Scenic's opening season. That season we rode in ancient communter cars pulled by a locomotive from SL&RG's freight fleet. Because it was Sunday this summer's trip was made behind a steam locomoitve. Newer passenger cars have arrived in Alamosa, including retired full dome cars purchased from the Alaska Railroad. Additionally, you can take your photos from an vintage observation car with an open rear platform. No more competing for space for photos from the vestibule of the last coach. And more people are riding the trains requiring more cars and longer trains. Weeday trains are pulled by diesel locomotives. It looks as though it is no longer behind borrowed freight locomotives. Handsomely painted diesels were sitting in the yard. So the tourist railroad which most people thought was one tourist railroad to many and would never survive more than a couple seasons has survived. I for one am glad it has. While I remain a confirmed freelance modeler, the SL&RG plus Rio Grande Scenic would be an inspiration for my future layout choices.

Posted by The Station Master at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Tuesday, 15 February 2011 8:38 PM CST

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