Fall 2009 Update

Sorry it has been a long time since my last update. The big news from our house is waiting for the arrival of our first grandchild (was due Oct 27th). Jacob and Kari will soon have a baby boy. We can't hardly wait to hold the little guy! Here are a few photos from this summer and fall.

Trip to Colorado included a stop at Chimney Rock near Scottsbluff, Western NE. This was an important ladmark on the Oregon Trail.

Awsome model railroad museum in Greely, CO.

Estes Park, CO

Colleen lost her shoe in a snow drift in Tundra country!

Early snowfall in Omaha.

5" October 9th.

First snowman of the season.

Kari and Andy carving pumpkins.

Tim and Jacob carving pumkins.

Spooky!

March railfanning in Indiana

Here are some photos from a few hours of railfanning near Milford and Leesburg Indiana. It was a very nice day for early March, 68 degrees and sunny.

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MCRR Scenery Update

I worked on the scenery along the Summit Siding and Summit Mine areas last weekend. I have completed the rigid foam board shaping, carved the rock cut areas and roughed in the tunnel portals. I applied the base coat of latex paint to the areas that will receive ground cover. Over the next few weeks I hope to complete the rock work, apply ground cover and add trees.

Mid-winter Update

We have had a reasonably mild winter so far this year. No too much snow and not too cold. I had a nice visit with Mark last month as part of my travels to DC for a Transportation Research Board conference. Since then I have been to Boise where one of my projects is entering into the construction phase. Next month Colleen is headed to Indiana for a family visit for a week, and I will be joining her mid-week in Inianapolis after I finish some business in Pueblo, CO. I also have some work starting up in Oklahoma and possibly Oregon next month so my travel committments are starting to increase.

Jacob and a friend moved from downtown into an apartment in southwest Omaha last weekend. It is really strange how he ended up in the exact same apartment that Lindsey and Andy lived in! What are the odds of that happening? Colleen and I were glad we could help with the move, and really glad there wasn't too much stuff!

I am still working on scenery on the model railroad. I hope to be to a stopping point by mid March so I can get the trains rolling again. I'll be posting some pictures soon showing the progress.

If I can get Colleen to create a blog post you can get her spin on what's happening here in the big O.

I added a few pics from Christmas.

More later.....

Erie Lackawanna RR, Missouri Central Division

Welcome to the Missouri Central Division of the Erie Lackawanna Railroad. This is my freelance model railroad based on the Erie Lackawanna surviving the mid 70's as an independent company and expanding westerward in the early 80's.

I will be posting various pictures and documents to capture some of the history of my railroad and current activities. My most recent efforts are focused on adding some scenery to the layout. Here are a few pictures taken over the last month.

My freelance railroad is located in central Missouri. This is based on the premis that after the Rock Island filed for bankruptcy in 1980, the EL purchased the Rock Island's St. Louis to Kansas City corridor.



Rigid foam insulation is being used to create rough terrain countours along Summit Siding

Rigid foam insulation is being used to create rough terrain countours at Summit.

Tracks have been reconfigured at Summit to increase capacity at Summit Mine and the Summit team track. A new industry (undetermined at this time) is also going to be added.

This mountain was recently created starting with rigid foam insulation. It is not completely finished, but you can get a pretty good feel for how the finished product will look. It is my first real attempt at using this method of scenery construction. The technique is somewhat time consuming but I am pleased with the results. This inspired me to rebuild the old plaster scenery at Summit with foam.

First Time Post

We have decided to take a bold step out of the dark ages and embrace technology by starting a blog. Our goal for this blog is simply to stay in touch with our family and friends. More later!

Photo taken September 2008 in Salt Lake City.