The plan

Here's a probable plan for the garden railroad. Nothing too complicated to begin with. The oval is in a 16' x 12' area and the terminal station is on a 10' x 4' extension. Trains would be able to be made up in the yard at the station and despatched to run around the oval as many times as I see fit before being turned on the reversing loop to head back home. Scenic development is still up in the air. As just last night the wife saw some G scale model lighthouses and thought that would be a great idea...

Trains have run!

The L.C. & RR had its first run yesterday and it was great fun!
OK so that is a rather rather grandiose name for what was in effect a 14' x 10' loop of track laid in the garden. But I had to lay the track and see a train running to get a feel for what I can do in this scale. You see, I've spent so long working in smaller scales that I had no idea what trains would look like running in the garden.

Just to see a Bachmann 4-6-0 and boxcar and caboose (just over 4' long) navigate this track helped me to get a feel for what I will able to do in the space I have. Obviously I'd like to use as much space as possible. (But I've got to be able to afford to fulfil those particular dreams and I need some ordinary garden left over)

So I think I'll start with a that nice, manageable 14' x 10' and add a few bits to it here and there. Like a reversing loop in the oval and a spur heading out to a terminal station with a small goods yard. It was a real eye-opener to see BIG trains running and what I thought was a big space, suddenly wasn't very big at all.
So now if you'll excuse me, I'm fired up after that running session I'll go and develop some ideas for a proper plan...

I'm a sneaky one...

Last Sunday I took my Bachmann G scale Silverton Flyer set that usually runs under the Christmas tree, laid some track through the flower bed out back, popped the train on it and showed it to my wife, Lorrie.

"There, now doesn't THAT look good" I said. (see below)

She agreed.

So, to cut a long story short. I will be embarking on the construction of a Garden Railroad. Something I know nothing at all about. I have a scheme that could take some 2-3 years to realise. But it should be fun.