BN Marias Pass, MT track plan HO

BN Marias Pass - Lower HO scale track plan by Dan Bourque
  • Size: 18′ x 26′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 28″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 26″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

This track plan is FAR from the Appalachians, but it captures an iconic piece of mountain railroading, the Burlington Northern’s route over the continental divide via the former Great Northern’s Marias Pass line across the Rockies near Glacier National Park, Montana. This route, the northernmost rail crossing of the continental divide in the US, is known for its snow sheds and incredible glacier-carved backdrops making it the perfect route for Amtrak’s “Empire Builder.”

The Layout

This track plan is designed to fit into a moderate-size basement complete with utility spaces and support poles. This is 50+ miles of railroad on the … Read more

CRR Loops, NC track plan N

CRR Loops, NC N-scale track plan - lower
  • Size: 12′ x 19 ′
  • Scale: N
  • Minimum Mainline Radius: 18″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

CRR LogoOne of the Clinchfield’s signature locations was its descent of the Blue Ridge between Altapass and Sevier, North Carolina, a section of the railroad known as “the loops.” Where neighbors took a more aggressive approach that led to operational headaches like the Southern’s 4+ percent grade at Saluda, the Clinchfield managed to wrap itself around the hills in a series of loops that kept the descent/climb at a very manageable 1.2 percent (compensated for curvature). This easy profile meant … Read more

N&W Pocahontas Main, WV track plan HO

NW Pocahontas Main HO scale track plan by Dan Bourque
  • Size: 11′ x 21 ′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 30″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

N&W Logo (Tuscan)The N&W’s Pocahontas Division encompassed the bulk of its coal field lines in West Virginia. While it was home to lots of coal, the “Pokey” main was also the primary artery of the entire railroad connecting the Midwest with the road’s eastern terminus of Norfolk, VA. As such, the main was a robust affair, double tracked with sidings and concrete coaling towers spanning the main between the large yards of Williamson, WV and Bluefield, VA, and traffic was a mix of coal, other freight, and the hottest passenger … Read more

N&W Abingdon Branch, VA, NC track plan HO

NW Abingdon Branch HO scale track plan by Dan Bourque
  • Size: 15′ x 24 ′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 27″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

N&W Logo (Tuscan)The Norfolk and Western’s Abingdon Branch was a sleepy operation that connected small towns in the mountains of North Carolina with the N&W main at Abingdon, Virginia. The line was known for its steep grades (3%), sharp curves, numerous bridges and mixed trains (freight and passenger). This line was home to the famed “Virginia Creeper” mixed train–today, much of the line is preserved as the Virginia Creeper Trail. The highest point on the N&W was on this branch as well, the top of the grade at Whitetop, VA … Read more

My New Layout – Southern Railway St. Charles Branch

In addition to keeping up Appalachian Railroad Modeling, I’m a model railroader myself. A few years ago, I had to tear down my first layout [largely unfinished] based on the Interstate Railroad in Virginia in preparation for a move. My layout space in the new house is a bit smaller, so it gave me the opportunity to model something different. You’ve probably seen a few of the ideas as they’ve shown up in the track plans section of ARRM.

Just a couple weeks ago, though, I began construction on my new layout, a 12 x 16′ double-deck design … Read more

P&S North End, PA track plan N

P&S North End, PA N-scale track plan
  • Size: 14′ x 24′
  • Scale: N
  • Minimum Radius: 15″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 27″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

Pittsburg & Shawmut LogoThe Pittsburg & Shawmut was a picturesque coal hauler that featured tunnels, high trestles and lots of small loaders nestled in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania. The heart of the P&S in later years was Brookville, PA, a small town that housed maintenance facilities, a small yard and an interchange with the Pennsylvania RR (and later the Penn Central and Conrail). A handful of trains, powered mostly by colorful SW9s, worked out of Brookville making this a great area to … Read more

BRIM Brimstone Railroad, TN track plan HO

BRIM Brimstone, TN HO Scale Track Plan by Dan Bourque
  • Size: 13′ x 18′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 24″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 27″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

The Brimstone Railroad was a quaint little coal hauler in northeastern Tennessee that connected with the Southern Railway’s CNO&TP line at New River, TN. What made the Brimstone unique was its motive power, a pair of three-truck shays that ran the 12-mile line into the 1960s, long after the Southern had dieselized. The Brimstone majored in coal and minored in lumber up until the early ’60s when Ritter Lumber shut down its operation in New River. In 1966, the Southern purchased the Brimstone and ran sporadic mine runs for the next few decades. The tracks were finally pulled up in 2015.

The … Read more

PRR Clearfield Branch, PA track plan HO

PRR Clearfield Branch, PA HO scale track plan
  • Size: 23′ x 15′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 30″ (except 27″ on hidden helix tracks as noted)
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 26″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

PRR LogoThe Pennsylvania Railroad’s Clearfield Branch ran from a connection with the Pennsy main near Tyrone, PA up over the Allegheny Plateau and into the rich coal fields. While the line stretched beyond Clearfield into NYC coal country, the heart of the Branch was the small yard at Osceola Mills, PA in the middle of the branch at the base of the north side of the plateau. From Osceola Mills, the Clearfield Branch continued northward toward Philipsburg and Clearfield, while the Moshannon Branch ran … Read more

N&W Dry Fork Branch, WV track plan HO

N&W Dry Fork Branch, WV track plan HO
  • Size: 15′ x 24 ′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 30″ (except 28″ on non-mainline tracks as noted)
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 27″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

N&W Logo (Tuscan)The Norfolk & Western’s Dry Fork Branch was a major artery through the coalfields of southern West Virginia. The branch connected to the Pocahontas Division mainline along the Tug Fork at Iaeger, WV to the north and to the Clinch Valley Sub to the south at Cedar Bluffs, VA. The heart of the Dry Fork Branch was the yard at Auville, WV, near Iaeger, where mine runs were assembled and mine run power kept.

The Layout

This track plan represents a … Read more

N&W Jenkinjones, WV track plan HO

N&W Jenkinjones, WV track plan HO
  • Size: 11′ x 20 ′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 30″ (except as noted on tail tracks)
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 33″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

N&W Logo (Tuscan)Jenkinjones, West Virginia was a company town that lay at the end of the N&W’s Tug Fork Branch, almost to the border with Virginia. Toward the end of the steam era, Jenkinjones was home to three tipples that all loaded company coal from the Pocahontas #3 seam. The tipples were reached via switchbacks after a grueling climb up 2.5% grades making this a tough piece of railroad to operate.

The Layout

This track plan represents Jenkinjones in the 1940s-50s when all three … Read more