Planning for Operations

While track is not yet installed on the layout, planning for operations is definitely part of the process, even at this stage. Once the track plan had been finalized by mocking up the Willow Springs side in place, I adjusted my scale track plan to incorporate those changes.

Revised track plan with Willow Springs to
the left and Willow Junction on the right

Version 2.0 and Naming the Tracks

With the track plan finalized, I was able to name all of the tracks.   Many model railroad writers, such as Tony Koester and Andy Sperandeo, suggest this as a way of making both the layout and operations on the layout more authentic.

The original plan for Willow Springs had a warehouse located along the siding, which in prototype practice would not have cars "parked" along it. The purpose of a siding is as a passing siding for meets or as a runaround; neither of these would be easily accomplished with a boxcar left at the warehouse. In this second iteration, the siding is able to function as a siding.

First draft of timetable and system map

Location On a Map

Earlier this spring I spent some time figuring out the location of the freelanced 4th Subdivision with its combination of fictional and real locations. Ferndale is a real town located along the GN mainline, now the BNSF. The Fourth Subdivision travels from the fictional Port Gulick Bay, located near the real Lumni Bay, through the lowlands towards the foothills and ultimately into the Cascade Mountains. Nooksack is a real location, while Willow Springs, Curtis, Chikamin (Chinook jargon for metal), and Green Rock are fictional names.

In addition to adding the 4th Subdivision to a prototype Great Northern system map, I also created a first draft of a timetable for a scheduled passenger train. Not only will locating the layout on a map help with orienting the movement of cars, but it will also help with creating appropriate and realistic scenery.