Click on a RR above (e.g. B&M Eastern Route ) to view photos
Rendezvous at Ken’s
John F. and I arrived at Ken’s at 9:00 AM and found that Richard was already there. Ken selected the “B & M Eastern Route” in South Hampton, NH from his GPS as our first destination.
Morning Visit (Layout #1)
This layout is a single-deck HO-scale layout that some of us had visited two years ago. The layout, located on the third floor continues to evolve. This year James V. is adding a peninsula to represent a portion of Lynn, MA. Staging is a “drive through” area somewhat out of sight.
Morning Visit (Layout #2)
The second, Boston & Maine in Exeter, NH, was an HO layout with a very finished look. Model Railroader did an article in December, 2014 titled “Build a gate to hide furnace” ( by Thomas Oxnard) on this layout. This layout is pretty much complete with many detailed scenes and staging hidden in a closet.
Morning Visit (Layout #3)
The third layout we visited was Bruce Robinson’s HO scale “Valley Junction” located in Sandown, NH. Bruce built this point-to-point layout with operations as a primary goal. He has staging and a destination in a room beside the main train room.
Lunch
We ate at the “Longhorn Steakhouse” Restaurant in Haverhill near Ken’s house. Since Ken was designated-driver, he had only two beers. The meals and service were both excellent. After the meal we headed to Ken’s so Richard could head home to take his wife out to supper. Ken decided to forego any afternoon visits, so John and I headed toward Worcester with a stop along the way at an N-Scale layout.
Afternoon Visit (Layout #4)
The fourth layout, Ernie Poole’s “Montana Rail Link” was featured in the May, 2009 issue of Model Railroader. The layout is squeezed into a medium-sized room and is completely landscaped. Despite the small(er) room, the layout is quite extensive as can be done with N-scale. One of Ernie’s crew had installed a tiny camera in a dummy locomotive, allowing a great view as it led one of the operating trains through a continuous loop portion of the railroad. It was great to see N-scale done so well.
Back to John’s
We returned to John’s home on Coe’s Pond, stopping at a local purveyor of fine distilled spirits to pick up a bottle of Bushmill’s Black of which we partook upon arrival. After a minimal taste I headed back to Monson, tour ended for another year.
Tour De Chooch Photos 