Planning and Layout for a Garden Railroad

Now that we had decided on the almost perfect spot for our Garden Railroad we could begin to plan some details.

Since I am a civil engineer, I guess I like to do surveying so my first step was to "run some levels" on the site. In surveyor jargon, that means to use a surveryor's level to determine the topography of the site -- how much difference in elevation exactly at all the various points on the ground in the area. I have a level, tripod and rod with which to do this but you might not be so lucky. There are other ways to determine your differences in elevation. You can just use a four foot carpenter's level to get an idea, use a ten foot long straightedge to determine the difference in 10', or you can even use a long piece of clear plastic tubing filled with water to determine level over longer distances. Whichever method you use, keep notes on the amount of fall and direction of it. For me, this helped determine the location of the waterfall, the stream and train rails. I could see where the best location would be for a tunnel (cut into the side of the hill), and where the terrain was mostly level for laying track without modification to the elevation. In areas that were low, I planned to build up an embankment with ballast and where the ground was higher, I could cut into the ground with something like a trench where necessary. I read in several places on the internet that the grade for Garden Trains should not exceed 3%, meaning there should be no more than 3 inches of rise in 100 inches (8 feet 4 inches). I also read recommendations on keeping curves to wide radii, the bigger radius the better so I planned to use only 10 foot diamter curves. You have to watch this because some manufacturers will list their curve track by size of the radius, others by size of diameter. Make sure you know which you are referring to.

The survey of the topography also reveals the drainage pattern of the site. From this information you can begin to plan where you'll need drainage pipes (culverts) under the track to prevent ponding of water, as well as were might be the best place for a trestle bridge or other type bridge.

I planned to put my waterfall at the highest point on the area, cut down into the hill for the initial drop, then meander a streambed down to the larger nearly level area on a sort of terrace at the site. I drew up my overall plan before starting to dig. I use a somewhat inexpensive Computer Aided Drafting program called "Turbocad" to do sketches of this sort of thing. Turbocad will import files in Autocad or Microstation format so if I ever need to do something with a really expensive drafting program, I can export from my inexpensive program. Of course, using CAD is in no way required. Strangely, a pencil and paper on a clipboard will work pretty much as well to nail down location of the various parts of the layout.

The drawing I ended up with as shown here is after several iterations of adjustments as I went through the construction process. A plan is just a plan. It will change several times as the work progresses. There are several old expressions about that but I won't bore you with them. Notice that I measured everything off of its relationship to the edge of our existing driveway. That gave me a reference point that would not be moving (I hope). Also notice that I carefully measured and plotted the location of all the large trees in the vicinity. Since I didn't plan to cut down any trees, I had to work all the elements around those existing trees. My initial plan did include designated areas for "commercial" buildings and such, as well as a "residential" area. This has not yet changed from my original concept. The drawing of the waterfall, stream and pond location is partly as-built conditions after finishing construction and partly as planned. I did have the same general arrangment as planned but the size and routing of the stream varied some as I actually built it.

Once I had completed my initial drawing, I planned the steps in accomplishing the project:

(1) Underground Power Feed -- Back to the problem of getting power to the site. That had to be my first step. I would need power for the pond pump and eventually for the railroad too. If I do the power feed first, I can use power tools at the site without having to use a long extension cord. It so happened that I was already experienced in doing this -- rent a trencher, run power cable, install a post on which to mount a receptacle, hook up both ends, cover the trench back up and your done!

(2) Dig waterfall, Stream and Pond -- This would be the toughest manual labor part of the whole project. I have a tractor with a loader attachment but it's not appropriate for digging a meandering small stream or pond. I would have to do all the digging by hand.

(3) Install Piping -- The pump would be submerged in the pond and would pump uphill to a filter. The outlet of the filter would be piped to the waterfall. I had to choose the equipment I would buy and plan piping based on its configuration.

(4) Pond Liner -- once all the digging and trenching was complete, I would need to install a pond liner. The liner prevents water from seeping into the ground, of course, and assuming it is installed properly with no leakage, prevents addition of water except to account for evaporation in periods of no rain. In my case, I planned to also install pond liner along the stream bed. Even the the stream would be lined with concrete, water can seep through concrete and again be lost into the ground. I planned to use a 50 mil pond liner instead of the somewhat thinner options available. I didn't want to have to redo it anytime soon.

(5) Fill with Water and Test -- A critical point once all the pond liner is in to run the pump and make sure the piping is sound and that everything functions as planned.

(6) Pave the Streambed -- I planned to use about a 2"-3" layer of concrete along the streambed similar to my prototype from Huntsville Botanical Garden. I would use a stiff concrete mix and not use any forming. I would form the wet concrete with a trowel.

(7) Construct RR Bridge Crossing Stream -- We liked the little concrete/rock bridge we saw at Huntsville so I planned to make a similar one with concrete.

(8) Install Phase I RR track -- I knew I would likely be expanding the track when I got really into the railroading fever but for now I planned a total track length of about 100' (The gray part of the drawing). I would have to use a shovel to scrap off the top layer of roots and organic matter, then put in ballast along the route of the track. Fortunately, I already had a pile of material that I planned to use for ballast. It is material that we had left over from making some paths through our shade garden. This material is referred to as "Eighty-nine ten". It gets that name from the designation of this size of material in AASHTO (American Association of State Highway Officials). It is mostly smaller than 1/4" size and includes some material that is fine like clay. Because of the inclusion a some small particles, 8910 will tend to stick together well and lock-in the railroad ties after being rained on once or twice.

(9) Construct concrete roads -- we planned a curvy road from town up to the top of the hill near the waterfall at which point we planned to put a church building and parking lot. The construction of roads will be an on-going process as new buildings are acquired over time.

(10) Set Buildings and Accessories -- We planned to use primarily manufactured buildings from Aristo-Craft and/or Piko. Since these buildings can eat up some money pretty quickly, we'll buy a few along over time.

(11) Wiring for Accessories

(12) DCC System -- We plan to use ordinary track power, nothing fancy to begin with. Later on if funds are available we can convert to DCC and remote control.

So, that's the plan. There are many options at every turn so these matters need to be carefully considered before starting construction to minimize tear-out and rework. To complete the Planning and Layout phase we placed a few stakes in the ground for the longest straight section of mainline track and a couple of stakes marking the location of waterfall, stream meanders and pond. Outline of the water features were marked on the ground with a waterhose to indicate where digging will be done. At that point, we are ready for the hard work. Continue to building it page -->