Now Arriving...

...trains to points east. Growing up on the east coast, I've been exposed to many railroads - existing in the past and present, large and small. But there's still much to learn and plenty to share, so come along for the ride as I share my train-related trips, trials, and tribulations!

If you haven't noticed, the photo at the top of this page is one of Amtrak's "Cities Sprinters" used to pull high-speed passenger trains. Along with these stainless steel locomotives and their consists, I tend to see Norfolk Southern and CSX freights several times a week. I enjoy railfanning these lines as time allows, but my fascination also lies in older fallen-flag railroads - particularly the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad and the Western Maryland Railway.

The Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad, affectionately known as the Ma & Pa, was a 77.2 mile shortline which ran from Baltimore, MD, to York, PA. This small line served a few large cities and many farm communities, hauling milk, slate, and other commodities. Its short trains traveled through the hills, along creeks, and around sharp curves. The Maryland division was scrapped in 1958; however, the Pennsylvania division continued operations until 1985. The railroad survives through the York Railway Co., which is operated by Genessee and Wyoming. Several parts of the railroad right-of-way survive and some structures are still intact. The memory of the railroad lives on through its historical and preservation societies. The historical society each year holds a "White Flag Extra" where its members visit the areas where the railroad once ran. The preservation society has preserved structures and track in Muddy Creek Forks, PA, and turned it into a heritage village to educate the public about the railroad and the milling operations which once took place there.

The Western Maryland Railway was much different from the Ma & Pa. This Class I railroad, known as the "Fast Freight Line," spread west from the Port of Baltimore to rural areas and the Appalachian coal fields. It shipped a variety of materials, a primary one being coal. This is my favorite aspect of the WM, as I find the railroads which climbed the Appalachians interesting. The railroad was a part of the "Alphabet Route," a group of railroads which worked together to connect the Midwest with the Northeast to compete with larger railroads. The WM continued independent operation until 1973 when it became part of the Chessie System. Several parts of its trackage are still in use today by CSX or shortlines carrying tourists and freight. The railroad's historical society maintains a museum and a collection of archives in the former WM station in Union Bridge, MD.

After all that talk about full-size railroads, here are some words about modeling them.

I began my model railroading career with a Bachmann HO scale Thomas the Tank Engine train set. This quickly expanded to include more locomotives, track, and structures. For a while, I had a 5' x 9' plywood table setup to experiment with track arrangements and operations. A few months ago, that table came down in preparation for a larger (and complete) model railroad. I played around with several trackplans and prototypes, but I could not settle on one plan or one railroad. Recently, I've decided to change my direction in two different ways:

1. Layout Size: I'm going to pursue a mini layout (or layouts). These small layouts are usually no more than 8 square feet and feature tight radii and selective compression. Even though they can be challenging for a beginner, mini layouts allow you to have a complete and finished railroad in a relatively short amount of time. (I've already started on a Western Maryland 24" x 35" layout!)
2. Scale (sort of): Even though HO scale is the most popular scale, not all equipment is suited to run on a layout with extremely tight curves and close clearances. However, I've always liked narrow gauge railroads, and since they were squeezed into tight places, a narrow gauge railroad wouldn't be out of place on a mini layout. I thought about On30 (O scale trains on HO track) for a while, but I decided that O scale was too big for my taste. But I still wanted narrow gauge railroading without having to pay for expensive brass locomotives.... Then I discovered HOn30, which is HO scale trains on N scale track! It allows me to still model in HO, but I get to have narrow gauge! HOn30 is growing in popularity. Minitrains (a European company) has a line of several locomotives; several new companies are springing up with new products; and the recent innovation of 3D printing allows small objects to have incredible amounts of detail. HOn30 also tends to be more whimsical than standard gauge HO, which allows me to be creative and innovative.

These are my current model railroad plans, but in the future I hope to build a large Western Maryland and Ma & Pa layout when I have more space and time.

I hope you'll visit this blog from time to time to read about what I've been up to, whether I'm watching Amtrak trains whiz down the tracks, exploring the railroads of yesteryear, or building models of trains which will chuff through the forest.