This morning I got a couple of hours in early, adding rocks, timber supports, color etc.... Then after spending time with sons and family stuff, (1 year old youngest grandson!) I was able to spend a bit doing some more gravel and rocks and painting the bridge abutments.
That's going to be a Grand scene @badlandnp. Watching patently. Thank you for posting photos. Happy birthday to your grandson. Joe
Well, there goes the neighborhood, in the springtime. everything will be covered in white fluff! Hope you're prepared to model that, too! lol
I thought about that! Ain't sure just how to make it look good in N! It sure is a different deal every year. One year it was so bad you couldn't see half a mile for a day or two!! SNEEZE!!
I put a thin coat of high gloss Mod Podge on a couple of days ago, and it got cold inside a couple of times. Here it is this morning. I am hoping this will cure out of it????
Soo, the water is getting close to done. I do like the ModPodge, it is easy to use. So after water comes foliage and such. Got a good start on all of that over the last week and this morning. This was earlier this week, And after today's fun, Dried roots and hairspray applied 'leaves' make nice foreground foliage, And broken dry sagebrush is a great source for larger trees and deadfall. Cottonwoods have a short life and then end up in the rivers and creeks,
Most cottonwoods have a short life... A few, like one in the Ft Worth Zoo, are very old. It is massive, and impressive to see. Brilliant idea, using dried roots rather than branches/twigs for small trees! If carefully harvested (soak the soil before harvesting), the very fine terminal branches (much finer than the finest leaf-bearing twigs grown above ground) will remain intact. Thank you for sharing!
We end up with some oldies up here, too. But not as massive as that one! I have the good fortune of occassionally digging stuff up with a backhoe that comes in handy for the layout!
LOL, never thought of a 1:1 backhoe as a model railroading tool. I mean, I knew they were versatile, but... "Honey?! I'll be back after a while; I need to get a new gadget for my layout..."
One of the comments I used to get was " You know you are a Model Railroader if you see everything as potentially part of a model RR!!"
Over the last week, in little spots of time I was able to get something done, Then this morning, I filled in the area to the right of the bridge with terrain,
Great work! The cottonwoods look real enough that I'm looking for all the twigs they drop in my yard every time the wind blows (which in ND is constantly)...
Twigs? I like it better when the sky is white like snow from the 'cotton!!' Thanks guys. It is taking time, but I like how it is coming out.
Eureka!! Bridges are finally back in! And connected to the mainline! There may be trains again.......... Added a dead cottonwood behind the track with some other trees and brush, And a bridge is in, Joined at both ends, As is the lower trestle, And boy howdy! Them little joiners are tough! And with fresh ballast! Yay!! Just got to get trains rolling!!
