Friday Layouts

Please note that the operating schedule for our event is subject to change.  Updates will be made to the blog as needed.  Please see below for more detailed descriptions of the layouts planned for each operating day.


Blue Ridge & White Mountain

The Blue Ridge & White Mountain is set in the fall of 1959 and represents railroading on the Maine coast during that time.  A freelanced railroad, the BRWM purchased the Maine Central's Rockland Branch and the Bangor & Aroostook's Searsport Branch and connected the two.  The railroad serves the Maine coast with a connection to the rest of Maine and Canada via the St. Albans & Northern Railroad.

This HO scale railroad occupies an L-shaped area of a basement, with one 24 X 12 area and another 25 X 15 area.  The 250 foot mainline is operated with the Digitrax simplex radio system.  Dispatching is under verbal authority communicated via FRS radios.  Car forwarding is done with car cards and waybills.

Still under construction, the BRWM does not yet have any scenery, but is fully operational.  The railroad is a double-deck design.

Attendees can choose from a dispatching job, three yard crew positions, and several road crew positions.  The layout owner requests that anyone who can bring a Digitrax throttle and an FRS radio with headset.

This layout is in a basement and is not handicap accessible.  One room also has 30" aisles.  Please contact us with further details of your specific situation so we can work with the layout owner to determine the limits of accessibility.


Central Carolina Southbound


The Central Carolina Southbound is three railroads on two layouts in one building.  Featuring modern-day operations in the North Carolina Piedmont, the CCSB has a mix of Norfolk Southern and CSX activity.  A point-to-point "nolix" represents the NS Piedmont Division mainline between Danville, VA, and Charlotte, NC, including some branchlines.   On a separate layout in the same building, the Winston-Salem Southbound and High Point, Thomasville & Denton are represented in a double-decked island.

The N Scale CCSB occupies an 18 X 48 foot space and features 190 feet of mainline trackage.  Scenery is 85% complete.  The railroad is controlled using Digitrax throttles (simplex radio or corded) and traffic is handled by two dispatchers working with the crews via FRS radios.   A verbal dispatching system is used with magnet boards for each dispatcher's territory.  Car forwarding is via Shenandoah Software four-cycle waybills and car cards.

Guests can sign up for two dispatcher positions, three yard crew positions, or a number of road crew assignments.  The layout owner asks for attendees to bring a Digitrax throttle and FRS radio with headset if possible.

The railroad is in a separate building with steps down into and out of the layout room, making handicap accessibility limited.   Please contact us with further details of your situation so we can work with the layout owner to determine the limits of accessibility.



Photos of Central Carolina Southbound by Kevin Beck.


Penn Central - Lehigh & Delaware Division

Representing northwestern New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania on the day of the Penn Central/Lehigh Valley merger of 1970, the PC Lehigh & Delaware Division is a busy railroad with a variety of traffic.

This N Scale railroad occupies an 1100 square foot basement and features 10 scale miles (approximately 330 feet) of mainline.  Scenery is about 80% complete and is complimented by several large industries, including a massive scratchbuilt steel mill at Bethlehem, PA.  The Digitrax simplex radio throttle system is used to control trains on the railroad, with plug-ins available for corded throttles as well.  Dispatching is performed under Centralized Traffic Control rules, with turnout positions and signals controlled by a dispatcher in an office separate from the railroad.  FRS radios are used for communication between dispatchers, yardmasters, and crews.  Car forwarding is done using the waybill-on-car system.

Attendees can select from two dispatcher positions (a dispatcher and assistant dispatcher are required to handle the traffic), five yard crew positions, or a number of road crew positions.  The layout owner requests attendees to bring a Digitrax throttle and FRS radio if possible.

Due to its location in a basement down a long flight of stairs, this railroad is not accessible by wheelchair.  To discuss any other concerns regarding accessibility, please contact us so we can work with the layout owner to determine limits.


Piney Fork Branch of the New York Central Railroad

The Piney Fork Branch is a prototype-freelanced version of the New York Central's branchline between Minerva and Dillonvale, OH, in 1965.   Moving strip mined coal from the hills of eastern Ohio to the industrial furnaces of the Midwest made good money for the NYC.  Through some modelers license, the branch was extended to a connection with the Toledo & Ohio Central east of Columbus.  This extension allows through freights to move in addition to the coal traffic.  Industrial switching is scattered along the line, with a heavy concentration at Lauren Steel Company in the town of St. Clairsville, OH.

Built in HO Scale, the Piney Fork Branch occupies approximately 410 square feet of a basement.  The 280 foot mainline is controlled using the Digitrax system with simplex radio throttle capability.  A verbal communication system is used between crews, yardmasters, and the dispatcher.  The dispatcher issues Form 19 Train Orders for the movement of traffic over the line.  Car forwarding is done using a sequential waybill system.  Scenery is approximately 20% complete and is nicely representative of the Ohio countryside.

Operators attending the Piney Fork Branch can choose between a dispatcher job, three yard crew jobs, and a number of road train positions.   Attendees should bring a Digitrax throttle to the session if possible.

The railroad is located in a basement but is accessible through the yard to a baseement door.