It is sadly time to write the eulogy for this layout. I've been in a funk for longer than I can remember, and I have probably spent less than 30 hours in the layout room in the past six months, and less than 1 hour operating. It is hard to let go, but I must. On the plus side, after starting in the autumn of 2012, I accomplished a lot and I think I am a better modeler for it:
1. I took on the challenge of a complex scratch build. I learned a lot from that process, especially planning and patience.
2. My scenery work definitely moved up a few notches on my own personal scale. Even the improvement from the Cisco to Skoonka scenes is notable to my eye. When I look back at my prior efforts, the improvement is especially clear.
3. I actually built it to operate and stage trains, with motorized turnouts, DCC control, proper frog powering, and a host of details I had not previously attained.
4. I managed to actually almost finish the scenery. There are probably a few hours to finish the backdrop, add a few trees and some minor details. The fascia is complete, the layout looks good, and for the most part, I am happy with it. The Cisco scene, even though it still needs lots of trees, is something that I really feel like I was able to make as realistic as possible.
5. I've narrowed my modelling interests enough to have a clear sense of what the trains should look like, and I have spent some of my time finishing rolling stock to that end. I have a long ways to go with this, but my motivation for this is now limited given that don't see a future for the layout.
6. Building the layout gave me the means to connect and make friends with a really large number of other modelers from all over the world. Everyone was encouraging and happy to share and for me, made this hobby so much more compelling than it was when I was alone in the basement.
So, what is next? I don't know. The On30 bug is hits on occasion, but I have limited space and I don't know if it will be satisfying in the near term. I'll dabble, no doubt.
However, I doubt I am done with n scale, but I'm looking for a path forward, something that fits in my space and gives me the motivation for the build. I found these attached photos from 2007, from my early days in n scale, that got me thinking again about a new layout. These are from my first "big" layout, a three-deck depiction of Minturn to Tennessee Pass in Colorado with the Rio Grande. It somehow fit into my space (less than I use now, I still was under the illusion in those days the room was a home office
) I had a lot of Rio Grande gear in those days, but I scared myself off from finishing the layout after building the basic bench work you see in the images. I lost the file for the design, but the elements are still in my head and there is something about this configuration that I am still interested in. I won't return to the Rio Grande, but I may leave CN behind. We'll see.
Now I need to finish a few scenery items, take a lot of pictures, and figure out what to do with the bridge.
Thanks for following along. I can't believe this thread has almost 67 000 views!
