We need a plan…

After several failed attempts at planning, I decided to bring in the expert. Paul Busse, a reknowned and very talented landscape architect, agreed to design the new railway, The Cranberry and Linville River. Paul was invited to dinner to look over the area. When he saw the hill I was worried would be a problem with planning, his eyes lit up with excitement. What I saw as a negative Paul turned into a positive.

I had my druthers- multiple loops, trains passing each other on opposite tracks, tunnels, a trestle and lots of bridges. Paul was able to incorporate most of them. He was able to incorporate my ideas in a way that interpreted what I wanted…not the hills of Kentucky but the mountains of eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina.

What happened to the K&N?

A gentleman on a forum I was member of sent me a picture of Linville Gap in North Carolina that changed my whole plan and introduced me to the East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad. Something in the picture below spoke to me and I wanted to learn more about the ET&WNC.

The East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad

Founded in 1881, the East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad was built to haul iron ore from Cranberry, North Carolina to Johnson City, Tennessee, it’s western terminus. In 1913 the ET&WNC purchased the Linville River Railroad, a logging railroad. Eventually extending to Boone, N.C. the ET&WNC served communities along the line for 60+ miles.

I joined the ET&WNC Railroad Historical Society and started attending conventions. I was hooked, and abandoned the idea of a free lance railroad for a garden railway inspired by the ET&WNC (ET). While the railway doesn’t model any specifics it does attempt to portray the mountainous region the ET served.

Part of the appeal of modeling the ET, was the availability of G-Scale (22.5:1) thanks to Bachmann. In 1988, Bachmann introduced their Big Hauler sets containing a ten-wheeler. They also offered a boxcar, flat car, and caboose based on ET prototypes.

I had a plan. I had my inspiration. Now time to start building!