Danes Wood, a 00 railway in the garden.

[fungus]

The garden party went very well, we had about 70 people there, and there was a continuous demand for "driving experience", especially among the ladies (of all ages from 4 to 88). We had trains going in opposite direction around the circuit, each with its own driver, and passing at speed. Any conflict for occupation of the single-track section were resolved amicably without any input from me. And the locos, stock and control equipment all operated reliably throughout the afternoon.

When most people had left, the "lads" took over, and their driving was gradually turning into a speed trial. I was just considering whether to leave them to it or be a spoil-sport when one of the trains left the track at quarry junction. It may have been the uneven track at this point due to the oak tree, or it may have been one of the many large wood-ants found there, but Pacific loco 34041 Wilton" and 4 of its 7 coaches ended up on their sides in the bottom of the quarry.

[cleanerg6e]

I too have just had a "ride" on your railway and what a great ride it is. Wonderful set up you have and I too like the disappearing 4F at the end. I also love the line running under the garden seat. The ornate frame creates a wonderful scene to the video.

At 5.36 on the video there is a plant on the left with blue to mauve flowers which I was wondering what it was.

It was great to see you through the window of the garden shed/come railway terminus.

Roy.

[fungus]

cleanerg6e said:

At 5.36 on the video there is a plant on the left with blue to mauve flowers which I was wondering what it was. .... Roy.

The mauve flowers are on a rhododendron bush. The blue are on a particularly aggressive weed, don't know its name.

[traingeekboy]

An aggressive weed... hmmm, you must mean morning glories.

Love all those shots BTW. The layout looks wonderful.

[cleanerg6e]

We have Rhododendron plants here but I'd never seen one with blue flowers before.

As for "morning glory" I thought that was more in the PJ trouser department.

Roy.

[fungus]

Here are some of the results from my latest operating and photography session. The operating side was interesting, as I was controlling the two locos independently from separate throttles on the same handset, and balancing their individual throttle settings by watching the tension in the coupling between them. The technique seems to work well. Since my normal loco policy is to have a cosmetic hook & screw coupling on the front of the loco, I keep a few 3-lonk chains to couple to the locos in the event of double-heading, banking, or hauling wagons only fitted with hook-&-chain couplings.

And now for the photos. They are aimed at finding some new viewpoints on the railway, using an 11-coach train headed by Hornby Bulleid pacific 34067 "Tangmere", and piloted by Midland 3F 0-6-0 43218. This is a combination that could have happened in real life in the 1950s or early 1960s on the Somerset and Dorset line between Bath and Bournemouth, where freight engines were regularly used to assist the pacifics over the 1 in 50 gradients of the Mendip hills. A train of 11 coaches would certainly have required assistance, and the same is true on the 1 in 50 gradients of my railway, where Tangmere would not have been able to move 11 coaches without the pilot engine.

[Ironhorse]

Fungus I am green with envy absolutely beautiful can’t wait to see more photos.

[cleanerg6e]

Fungus I have an Ivo Peters video of the S&D in which Peter Smith who was Donald Beale's fireman said that the original Bullied's were rather weak in climbing the Mendip hills. He also said that in rebuilt form he felt that the locos were much stronger. Of course on a model railway rebuilt or unrebuilt it doesn't matter. When Evening Star first arrived on the S&D it was piloted by a standard 4 2-6-0 as they were unsure of it's pulling power.

But I love the photos and the angles you've chosen.

Roy.

[fungus]

... and here are a few more pictures

[fungus]

All is not well at Quarry sidings. The junction is close to the Oak tree, and it was always recognised that the tree's roots might one day cause problems. Over the past two years, the ground has lifted slightly, and one of the rail joints opened up by about 2mm. However, the situation is now changing rapidly. In the past month, the rail gap has opened up to 8mm, and there is a pronounced "hump" in the track. I suppose it's the opposite of subsidence. Whatever it's called, some speedy action is required.

[mick]

Oh dear - that's some major ground movement at Quarry Sidings

Hard to determine from the photos but what do you see as your best options? Can it be remedied without too much trouble? Is there an alternative route that could be taken to avoid that area?

[roddy]

I think the opposite of subsidence is called heave. Not a good thing either way round.

[fungus]

Avoiding the area or raising the level of the track are not options because of the gradients and the lie of the land. Any other speculation about a solution is likely to be meaningless until I understand the problem. Is it a root of the oak or something else? How far below the track foundations is it pushing from? So the first thing to do is dig! The large wood-ants won't like me doing that, and will do their best to demonstrate their displeasure.

[Andrew]

Ian,

It was good to see you and the visiting locos on the Dorking Garden Railway last week. There's a five-minute video of your and other visiting locos here:

and here's a pic of your nice saddle tank "Annie Maggie May":

[fungus]

Today a 5mph speed restriction was in place at Quarry junction, and the civil engineering team were digging an exploratory trench between the railway track and the oak tree. Train services ran as normal.

The first photograph shows that the most likely cause of the earth movement is growth of the large root in the foreground, and possibly also the next one round. This was identified as a risk when the route was surveyed prior to construction three years ago. More investigative digging is required around the biggest root to establish whether there is enough height between the tree root and the track to take a bridge and as much air space as possible to allow for future tree growth.

The second picture shows one of the wood ants with a mission to defend the tree against intruders.

[traingeekboy]

In the first shot the hump is not so noticeable, then I scrolled to the wider one and realized exactly how much lift you've got there. It's certainly the joys of owning a real railroad and all that the elements may bring. Since you work with stone for your base it must be quite a job to tear out old sections.

[mick]

Hadn't realised just how close the running line was to that tree. Yes, that certainly looks like the culprit to me. You mention a bridge and I guess that's one of the few options open to you providing there's sufficient clearance between the root and the tracks. It should buy you a bit more time at least.

I think across to the Weekend Railway and see a tunnel going right through that old oak but I know that's not an option at Danes Wood.

[doublecee]

To the rear of our garden railway is a big tree too, and we couldnt justify killing the tree just so I could have a wall built near it, so I went for a different option for this area, namely the posts and timber. Looking at your dilema, Im wondering if a similar approach may work, giving the main root a wide berth.

This is where the civil engineering aspect of our hobby really comes into play. Maybe the wood ant, with their millions of years of construction know how was actually offering up some assistance He's probably looking at the camera wondering how best to convey to the human that he knows a few million guys that could help out.

Anyway, I digress. Cant wait to see what solution you come up with as Im a big fan of your layout.

[WeekenderSteve]

Mick, how did you know we'd been pondering tunnelling straight through one of the trees?!

I'd hesitate to do it on a live and valued tree though. Any cut through the bark risks allowing rot into the core of the tree.

From the photo, a bridge with a suitably slim deck seems feasible - although a suitable material remains a question. Grot will tend to infill under a low bridge, so conditions are likely to be primarily damp. Slim and strong suggests a metal, but steel will rust, though galvanised steel might offer a suitable lifetime. Aluminium tends to turn to white powdery corrosion when kept wet, and will expand and contract a lot with temperature. Stainless steel? Not easy stuff to work, though - and still has quite a high thermal expansion coefficient. A metal base also makes track attachment more of a challenge, so I wonder if a leaf could be taken from Ironhorse's book, and an outdoor plastic extrustion used?

Trackbed heave near a quarry adds a further element of realism to the model, though, even if Dane's Wood is quite a way from Stainforth:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-23217637

[Rossi]

Must be catching this subsidence.

My viaduct has been in situ for one and a half years now, but this little crack has started to worry me.