My Layout in the Summer of 1999

I posted pictures of my layout on my old website beginning when I started it in November 2002. I never posted these pictures on my old website, but am including them now for completion.

I took these pictures of my layout in the summer of 1999. I believe it was late June. I had finally installed roads in the town of Logan, made of asphalt roll roofing with the gravel side facing down. I had the idea of taking pictures for a fake newspaper article about road work snarling traffic and temporarily halting the railroad while new crossings were installed. The pictures didn’t come out well, however, which is really not a surprise.

Here is a picture of the Logan depot, with a sign indicating the temporary end of track while grade crossings are installed. I knew better than to use the flash for these pictures, but I forgot to turn it off.

Here is the same picture taken without the flash. It turns out the flash wasn’t really the problem.

Here is a picture of the other end of the town. I had recently acquired these buildings for the town, and they helped me figure out exactly how I wanted the road laid out. The fake newspaper article included quotes from business owners about the impact the construction had on them.

With the railroad and the roads impacted, I decided the railroad would use its hi-rail bus for passenger service during construction. While running it, the Bachmann hi-rail bus just happened to derail and end up on its side. This added an unexpected element to the story, so I took a picture of the wreck. Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out well.

Replacing the hi-rail bus was a BC Rail RDC-3, despite the fact that its paint scheme was an anachronism for the 1960s era my layout was set in at the time.

Here is an overview of the new roads around the Logan depot. Notice that the railroad is temporarily closed at the crossings, and a gondola has been spotted for debris removal. The hi-rail bus has been placed on a flat car at the engine terminal to be sent for repairs, and the BC Rail RDC is near the depot. The RDC is not the only anachronism on the layout; several of the vehicles are also too new for the 1960s. Even though the railroad crossings are closed, there is still a lot of road traffic in town. The motel is back in its original location, and the 7-Eleven is now present. This is the final arrangement of the buildings in the town.

Here is the other end of the town. There are railroad crossings here as well, visible in the background. The Baldwin switcher was placed to move any cars if needed. This is the final arrangement of the buildings in the town. The road still needed to be painted.

I also took a picture of the other town on the layout, San Miguel, which had concrete roads for years. I think the gravel parking lot around the depot was another recent addition. Some of the grass around the houses may have been as well.