The PDR started as a circle of track a Feldbhan loco and some rolling stockfor my son when he was 5 - he's now 19

We moved outdoors about 10yrs ago and built an oval main line, through a shed with sidings, and featuring a canal accessed by a headshunt, a tunnel, a causeway and bridge with a station and a coal mine

We went "live steam" about 5-6 yrs ago with a Katie, and now have a Russell and a Caradoc

This necessitated a shed avoidance line to make the minimum radius R3

Last Year we started a major project - a highland extension taking off from the higher part of the main line and ascending the field via horseshoe bends and a spiral - 60mtrs of track later we have gained our objective, the rockery - 1.5 mtrs vertical gain

This year we have a lot of hard landscaping to do and more digging and tracklaying to have a run around loop around the rockery, and a mine on the said rockery. Plans are afoot for a water feature and a mountain, and improving the rudimentary intermediate and upper stations.

 

 

Intermediate station with horseshoe bend behind

 

 

cutting on one of the bends

 

the original oval seen from steam-up siding level

                                                      - -  ---  - -

Katie and coaches in headshunt siding to canal:

 

another view of the main line, in snow
I confess to this being a favourite

 

A run yesterday in the cold to test Buzzard [Katie] after a repair - replacement crank pin from Roundhouse - one fell out a week or so ago.

 

1. from the miners' halt near the junction with the main line, looking up at the bends

 

 

2. between the horseshoes

 

3. at the intermediate halt / passing loop

 

4. entering the spiral

 

5. on the spiral

 

6. at the top station - currently a run-around loop, this will be replaced/extended by a return loop around the rockery when the weather improves.  We expect to uncover a mine on the rockery

 

points -

a. I need a better camera

b. would this be better in a separate thread ? landscaping / tracklaying?

-- 15/2 - replaced some of the earlier photos with better ones

 

overall view

 

coming out of the cutting

I need to get on with the stone lining before the grass starts to grow

 

silhouette

 

the junction, mine and different track levels

 

Track power yesterday

 

steam and snow still favourite though

 

a [very] schematic trackplan

 

 

 

out on the line 9/4/10

Russell in new livery, with new slate/rock/conifer landscape 

 

 

mole trouble

 

 

 running yesterday

Buzzard [katie] goods train

 

Russell in the lined cutting, slate waste infill

 

both trains meet at the busy, refurbished and landscaped top station

 

looking up the hill at the inclines and 2 new station buildings

Running at the weekend, 5/6/10,  Russell with W&L style timber train

would look better with logs though

quite a few modifications with recycled slate on cuttings, embankments, and as in-fill

 

 

low leve photo by my son - he takes the best ones

link to GSC article