Summer Progress Update

This update follows a long summer (and spring) of progress on the Cascade Sub. Given school closures and stay-at-home orders, the past months have been the most productive in the layout's brief history. Most notably, scenery is well underway on the lower level in Oakridge and Westfir, and the entire layout is operational with the recent completion of Klamath Falls Staging. 

Early in the spring, attention was devoted to installing fascia near the entrance to the layout to give the duck-under area a more finished look. A good amount of work is still to be done in this area, however fascia installation along the middle level (Fields, OR) and subsequent installation of LED lighting allowed for significant scenery progress in Westfir and Oakridge. 

Fascia, Lighting and Scenery installed in Westfir. 

In Oakridge, the neighborhood scene saw the most significant progress. Terrain was followed closely by installation of the main road, dirt and ballast, and grasses. Structures for the scene are in progress. This is an area with great modeling potential given its depth. I look forward to bringing this area closer to completion in the future!

Scenery in the Oakridge Neighborhood.

Progress in the Oakridge yard was minimal, however a realignment of the geo-west wye leg into an additional double ended locomotive track has greatly improved operational efficiency. 

New yard alignment in Oakridge.

With the completion of Klamath Falls Staging and the mechanical functioning of the upper level, terrain forming began near Summit. While this step may seem out of sequence, this is mainly a form of protection to prevent equipment from falling many feet to the floor should a derailment occur. Much of this work was accomplished during a work session with fellow modeler Cam Nealy (railfan220 on Youtube) who has a beautiful modern BNSF layout, the Plains Division. 

Terrain forming at Summit. 

With the railroad functioning properly, I have turned my attention to filling out the locomotive roster and freight car pool. I will share these acquisitions as they are weathered and placed into service. Two new locomotives of note are the new ScaleTrains.com Tier 4 Gevos that were released this summer. Both of these engines have been weathered and are in service on the Cascade Sub mainline. ScaleTrains installed full lighting packages into this new run which include LED headlights, ditch lights, walkway lights, number boards, and ground lights. 

Newly weathered ScaleTrains Tier 4 Gevos. 

I am once again away from the railroad itself for quite some time which will impact progress significantly. Despite this, I have many weathering and structure projects in the works that are able to be accomplished remotely. I look forward to sharing these as the weeks and months go on. More to come from the Cascade Sub!