Joe Fugate's HO Siskiyou Line Model Railroad

Our train has exited Coquille, rolled across the Coquille river on a truss bridge, and is now passing through the town of Myrtle Point. The railroad serves a lumber mill here (the spur has some logs piled next to it).

In this photo you can see a cadboard mock-up of the Myrtle Point station. And in the background on the rise will eventually be the town of Myrtle Point, shrouded in lush vegetation typical of Western Oregon.

Some scenery texturing has been added to this area since the 1999 "follow my train" photo.

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The rails leave Myrtle Point, cross highway 42 and begin their assault on the coast mountains. This bridge crosses the Middle Fork of the Coquille River, and plunges through Sugarloaf Mountain (tunnel 3).

The grade at this location is 2.5%, and longer trains often need helpers to make it up the grade. I thoroughly enjoy helper operation, and this grade on the Coos Bay branch is a real thrill to operate with helpers.

This area on the layout is where construction first started in May 1991. I was eager to see how the tall bridge scene looked, and I must say it turned out quite satisfactory. Since I have freelanced this part of the Coos Bay branch, the bridge shown here is likewise freelanced, although I based it on similar structures on the SP Tillamook, Oregon coast branch.

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If you bend over and peer through Tunnel number 3 from the Remote, Oregon side, here's what you see. This tunnel is a relatively short bore and has a full tunnel lining -- which makes it look great if you peek through it while a train is in it.

While merely cosmetic, this tunnel does a great job of separating the upper part of the branch from the lower part. The only other tunnels on the entire layout are the upper and lower halves of Camas Mountain helix. From operating on club layouts with lots of hidden trackage, I developed a distaste for hidden trackage so the Siskiyou Line has a minimum amount of it.

The hillside around the tunnel could use some more weeds and grass. But even as it is, the area looks quite nice ... and it's great fun to see a loco with a functioning full SP light set rolling through the bore!

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Our power lashup has fully exited Tunnel 3 and rolls across the King Creek bridge on its way to the tiny village of Remote, Oregon. This bridge crosses both highway 42 and King Creek.

You can see a densely forested hill of Douglas Firs in the background. This scene hasn't changed much from the 1999 "follow my train" series, but that photo did include some interesting construction notes. Click here to read them.

Across the aisle in the lower left is Coquille. Above Coquille in the far upper left is the (mushroom) backdrop side of the upper deck around the North Umpqua River. In the far distance you can see the west end of Myrtle Point.

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Page last updated on January 1, 2005
E-mail:  siskiyou@railfan.net