It’s cold and there is quite a lot of snow on the ground here in central Indiana. We made it out to the store yesterday to get supplies. Thanksgiving came and went, and the Christmas decorations are all up. My wife is a stickler about this. I manage the Central Indiana Division’s Danville show which takes place the Saturday before Thanksgiving, and all that is behind me for a while. I also publish the CID’s newsletter the “Rusty Spike” and I have worked ahead so it is mostly ready for publication on the first day of winter. I should now have some time to work on the model railroad!

Actually, I should confess, I am retired and modeling season really is never over. I work on the model railroad year-round. Sometimes I get into a bit of a slump and need something to get me going again and the weather has done it for me (I’m even writing an entry into my blog).

I am currently working in the town of Waterville. There is a yard and engine service facility which is mostly complete. I have some structures to build to fill in the area. I am in the process of adding some revenue creating businesses. I added a turnout and spur for a coal fired generating station. I used the Walthers kit for this which is a little over-used and I am a bit embarrassed by it. I did add lighting and a shed for the coal delivery track. Most of my structures have lighting installed that is controlled through an Arduino micro-processor which acts as a DCC accessory controller.

I just laid two more turnouts and the trackage for this area toward the front of the lay, including a coal trestle on the outskirts of town. I have yet to wire the track, power the turnouts, and add the uncouplers, all of which requires crawling around under the layout. The coal yard still needs a structure and some sort of scale to weigh the outgoing coal trucks, and I need to add the railings to the trestle.

Using the Bar Mills Wicked Wandas as an inspiration I scratch built a house of questionable activity on the hill above town. I also added a background picture of Blair Line’s Sam’s Roadhouse along the gravel road up the hill.

I started designing a freight depot several months ago and have just gotten it painted and added the docks. I am in the process of laying the plank flooring now. I have added some interior details and lights. I try to add just enough interior details to make it look like there is activity. The docks will have hanging lamps as well. There is quite a bit of work to do yet, but I’m seeing light at the end of the tunnel. I don’t plan to add this structure to the layout until after a CID modeler’s meet in early January where I am hoping to share this structure.