| It was somewhat of a surprise to find that one of the museums
contained model railroads and that it was open all day most days. American
railroads (and thus models) are quite different to those in the UK because
the engines and the trains are so much bigger. This is one of several HO
layouts (3.5mm) with a typical steam locomotive, this one from the New York
Central railroad. |  |
 | A closeup of a
typical freight loco from the Santa Fe railroad, again in HO scale. |
| Here are a pair of 1950s diesels from the Union Pacific railroad
with some old style observation passenger cars. Passenger trains are
somewhat of a rarity in the US these days. |  |
 | The scenery is
not bad but not to Pendon standards. However they do have palm trees which
we don't have in the UK and it seems to be easier to find model cars of the
right period. |
| This is a more modern SD45 diesel typical of the main motive
power in use today. The railroad represented by this livery is unknown. |  |
 | This is in one
of the less finished parts of the layout. It represents an old style steam
roundhouse (engine shed). These were common in the US but almost unknown in
the UK. |
| American railroads (particularly in the west) travel some fairly
mountainous country and the wooden trestle bridge is another widespread
feature. They survive today because the train speeds are so much slower than
they are in the UK. This is an excellent model of a typical American
railroad feature. |  |
 | Someone is
obviously quite expert at building these. They have also put a lot of effort
into the rock scenery and modelling the gorges through which many of these lines
run. |
| There are several layouts belonging to different clubs. The
feature on this one is running prototypical length trains with up to 50
freight cars behind 3-5 engines. The engines all have individual computer
chips to enable the speeds to be precisely matched. It looks quite
effective and the trains travel prototypically slowly. |  |
 | They also have an
N gauge layout (2mm) which is every bit as complex as its big brothers. |
| This layout even has its own wharf with a tugboat and a frigate in
the harbour. |  |
 | One tiny feature
is this 'nodding donkey' oil pump which is very typical of the landscape in
many of the western states. |
| But many of the visitors are kids so little touches of humour are
all over the place to catch their eye and spark an interest. Note the shark
in the pool! |  |
 | One of the clubs
runs an old O gauge 3-rail layout. This is much more child oriented with
Thomas the tank engine and other suitable attractions. The scenery is
less realistic but more eye-catching than with the other layouts. |
| But most of the layouts have some humour - it is to be hoped this
is a shock-absorbing wagon! |  |
|