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Jim Strong's Woodland Railway
Anybody who's been into Garden Railroading for awhile has probably read a few articles in GR magazine about Jim Strong's Woodland Railway.
We've been fortunate to have been invited several times.
2007
2008
2013
2012
September 8. Saturday.
July 26. My motorcar starts out on the wide open part of the layout.
Clearances were certainly tight. I THOUGHT that my Shay might make it, but it kept getting hung up on the rocks.
Jean guards that Shay.
July 26. The Shay does well on the trestle.
My Shay won't quite fit through all of the tunnels - that's a tall stack.
The Woodland Railway just looks restful and inviting.
July 26. I barely caught Jack Thompson in this picture, but that's Jim running the passenger train.
Kevin tries to get a picture of Jack's locomotive.
Here, Ben, Jack, Ken, and Kevin discuss some weighty topic. Note the baggage car used as a temporary storage platform.
August 11. Jim has repainted all of the buildings since I was last there a few years ago and they really do look nice.
A view of the Woodland Railway. That's the station just to the left of center. Everything is very nicely landscaped.
Jim's scratch built station.
August 11. Jean and Ruth Strong.
Andy had his own agenda. I was going to take the passenger train, but he was having too good of time playing with the cars. He's really good at putting the cars on the track...we thought it was because he was so much closer to the ground.
I did get one car from him - a shot with my RS-3 on the trestle on the way to the upper level.
August 11. On the way up, you cross this pair of double slip switches. It works very well and Jim says that it's less troublesome than any of his other switches.
My RS-3 makes a stop at the station.
August 11. Jim picked up this baggage cart when they were restoring the old Washington Union Station. You can tell it's been there awhile.
My motorcar heads up from the lower level.
Jean was driving the motorcar.
August 10. I just can't help but admire all the older buildings out on Jim's layout.
I got a chance to visit the basement, where Kevin appears to be up to experimenting with some new weathering techniques. ;) (He claims it is really his daughter's work...)
Jim uses painted pennies to show where a car is headed, and each location is color coded. We started at a green location, and basically picked up every car that did not have a green penny on it.
August 10. The whole place just seems enchanting, and it's easy to just sit and watch and listen to the trains go by.
Then it was on to the blue location where we picked up a few cars destined for the lower part of the RR and dropped off some others.
We knew that my Shay would not fit through one of the tunnels, so I had arranged with Kevin to meet at the next passing siding and trade trains with him.
August 10. I soon found another tunnel that the stack wouldn't clear, and quickly changed the plan to meet back where I had been working.
Meanwhile, Ray Rogali ran by with his Connie with enhanced smoke.
Kevin arrived with his train, and we swapped cars.
August 10. Business has picked up...or at least switching has.
Later, Ray brought out his Pacific - 5 separate smoke generators - including one for the generator, and one for the whistle!
August 10. Some of the buildings need a bit of work.