Mark's New Railroad and More Pics From Session 11

Mark sent me these wonderful images which he took in his backyard showcasing his large scale garden railroad he has constructed at his home.  The captions are Mark's as well.

Mark says,  "Here I have pasted some photos of my little railway.  It was inaugural day today, so I pulled out my all-time favourite loco, the LGB White Pass Alco, along with a short consist.  Look at car #2: We all "deserve a break", eh?"

"The Alco is still rail-powered DC, but she runs very, very smoothly.  I didn't even have to clean the track!"

"The railway is called the Patrick and Perimeter Line (or P&PL for short).  The point is to essentially model an interchange between the Perimeter Line (so called because it runs a big loop around the backyard) and a short line that currently terminates as a spur at the little grave of Patrick - this was a miscarriage we had a couple of years ago, and we named him/her Patrick - and he/she is buried there, so it is a special place for our family.  You'll recognize it by the pinwheel in the photos.  You'll see my wife, Karolina, she's waving hello."

The beautiful pinwheel that marks the very special location along the line.

"Anyways, I am very happy for my little line in 2019 - the first year of ops."

 "And lots of room for expansion in the years to come."  

"We live in a brand new subdivision so there is absolutely no landscaping - not even a fence."

" Hence I've laid the track on ballast on the ground without raising it as it blends in better with the (lack of) scenery."

I would like to take this moment to thank Mark for sharing these wonderful images.

Your railroad is very special indeed.

Mark also wanted me to include these few images he took from our recent operating session at Fred's.  That's Mark's gorgeous looking locomotive rounding the bend at Lilly.

He had earlier departed Nelson Yard with his crewmate, Pat.

They are running Train 314, which is their final train of the morning.

Mark captured this shot of their earlier train, 304, working the industry to the east of Bell named in honour of Henk.

Mark captures two railroad employees doing some heavy lifting!

That's me and Moe attempting to re-rail his rather large locomotive while Pat surveys the situation in back.

Moe's locomotive is running the Nelson Yard - Bell Turn, Trains 67-68.

Moe's train was lensed earlier down in Peter's Pond.

Mark's and Pat's train is in Spruce on the final leg of its journey eastward to Craig Leigh.

The sound of this steam locomotive reverberates in the surrounding forest as their train ascends the grade into Mount St. Helens.

Little Ruby is such a special sight to see!

Out on the high iron.

Rounding the bend at "The Corners."

Thanks so much, Mark, for sending along these images and the great story that goes along with them.  I'm sure your children will enjoy their backyard for years to come!

All the best,

Mike Hamer, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada