East-end Staging Yard

The benchwork is in place for the east-end staging yard, representing the CPR Gibson Subdivision east of Hainesville. The staging yard will be just below East Newbridge and South Newbrdge. It is time to start laying track! There will be 8 staging tracks (4 tracks for the 3 daily passenger trains, 2 tracks for the CPR local freight, and 2 tracks for the CRY/CPR fast freight. I still need to construct the removable "bridge" over the sink. Once completed, the staging yard will make it possible for the big yard in Millville to be a functional classification yard with its own yardmaster.

Recommended Resources for Modelling the Potato Industry

 

Incorporating Potato Farming and Shipping on a Model Railway

Recommended Resources

1.     These two National Film Board of Canada videos, free online, provide exceptional insight into the potato industry in Carleton County, NB.

·        "Harvest in the Valley" 1955   https://www.nfb.ca/film/harvest_in_valley/

·        "Potatoes" 1976   https://www.nfb.ca/film/potatoes/

 

2.     About modelling the potato industry in Maine:

·        “Aroostook – A Railroad You Can Model,” by Peter A. Cook.  Model Railroader, 

July 1966.

 

3.     For anyone interested in potato shipping by rail from Prince Edward Island:

·        https://princestreet.wordpress.com (Chris Mears).  Search for “potato” for great info about potato shipping on Prince Edward Island.

 

The Carleton Railway:

Email:  mcmulls@nb.sympatico.ca

Instagram:  @carletonrailway

Youtube:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TTX0pGBz18

(20-minute 2023 layout tour)

The Completed Potato Field

I finally completed the second large potato field in Rosedale; there are a total of 107 rows of potatoes -- it took a long time to "plant" all those rows, but I think the result is worth it. Since potato farming is so important to the Carleton Railway, the potato fields are more than just scenery -- they provide a visual context for the railway's existence. In the photo, it is early morning on the farm as the sun rises in the east.

Fishing under the Railway Bridge at Big Lake

Life looks very peaceful at Big Lake, York County, as the Nor'Easter from Boston crosses the bridge on the way toward Fredericton via the CPR Gibson subdivision.   

"Planting" HO-scale Potato Fields

I finally "planted" the big potato field in Rosedale last weekend.  The first photo shows the beginning of process, and the second photo is the finished field.  There are 98 rows of potato plants. 

 

Guest crews this winter

In February  I was glad to host a 12-person group from PEI and Moncton for a day of operations.  Then the following week a smaller group from the Amherst, NS area were joined by some locals to operate the Carleton Railway again.  Here is the PEI/Moncton group:

Looking back on a very good year

2023 has been an amazing year for the Carleton Railway.  Monthly operating sessions resumed in January with an average of 7-8 people at each session during the winter months.  The "Fundy Rail Fest 2023" convention in May meant that I did a lot of work to get the railway ready.  24 people attended the two operating sessions, and another 25 or so came for the open house.  During the summer and early fall I made major changes to the timetable and to the train orders, and I worked to improve the ways the two major yards work.  The results have made a big difference.  The last two operating sessions (November and December) have been the most enjoyable so far, with 14 crew members in November and 15 in December.  The train crews are also becoming more familiar with the railway.  I am looking forward to a good year in 2024.  The next operating sessions will be January 16, February 20, and March 19.