BUILDING PACI A northwest mountain railroad constructed by a retired garden-center T he Pacific Northern Railway started to become a reality when two things happened. The first was that I, Fred, and my wife Bernice moved from a house on a small, flat lot in a subdivision to a home on a large lot with some significant elevation changes. The second was when we both retired in 2001 from the garden-center business that we had THE operated together for 21 years. It happened that the National Garden Railway Convention was held in Seattle that year so I had plenty of time to visit all of the railroads on the tour with my grandson Zachary, who has been my railroad-hobby partner since he got his own large-scale train around his first birthday. 34 Garden Railways February 2017 2017 Kalmbach Publishing Co. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher. www.gardenrailways.com
1. Passengers scurry to board their train as evening settles over the railroad. The station platform extends 10 feet. FIC NORTHERN owner and his grandson by Fred Konkell and Zachary Zielinski Federal Way, Washington PHOTOS BY THE AUTHORS Zachary and I spent the whole week viewing railroads, taking hundreds of pictures, and identifying features that would eventually be incorporated into our railroad. Bernice graciously granted yard space for the railroad s location, and we started to develop the trackplan. The location was on a sloping hillside, which gave us some design challenges. Among the components desired for the railroad was a water feature to accommodate bridges; long, sweeping curves for long trains; two switching yards; and many sidings for industries. It was necessary to hold grades to less than 3% to facilitate the long trains. Prior to construction, we staked out the trackplan using PVC pipe. The initial groundwork began in the summer of 2002. We weighed the pros and cons of free-floating track versus attaching the track to a solid roadbed. We chose a solid composite product for the roadbed, along with pressure-treated lumber rated for ground www.gardenrailways.com 35
2. Retaining walls and the river flank the switcher as it travels up the basin s route. Groundcover, mostly baby tears and native moss, has grown around and through the retaining walls, extending all the way to the river s edge. 3. Mechanics are hard at work repairing the convertible. Meanwhile, a passenger train pulls into the station as the switcher spots cars at a warehouse. contact. By using these products, we hoped to guarantee an extended lifespan for the railroad s structure. Part of the design phase included developing a fictitious history for the railroad. The Pacific Northern Railway was formed when the Northern Pacific and Great Northern Railroads merged in the early 1960s. I chose the name Pacific Northern because it included parts of the names of both of the original railroads. The two-tone green passenger-train colors were used because famous designer Raymond Loewy had recently redesigned the color scheme in the late 1950s, and it was cheaper to use this paint scheme than to repaint all of the equipment. The actual date in history modeled on the railroad is June 25, 1966, which is the last time 36 Garden Railways February 2017
The Pacific Northern Railroad Drawing not to scale 1. Oil tank 2. Tanks 3. Office 4. Freight shed 5. Garage 6. Bank 7. Cafe 8. Station 9. Coffee shop 10. Clothes shop 11. Grocery 12. City park 13. Car repair shop 14. Warehouse 15. Speeder shed 16. Barn 17. Farmhouse 18. Coal mine 19. Gravel works 20. Log deck 21. Grain elevator 22. Silos 23. Diner 24. Yard tower 25. Stock yard 26. Meat packing Raised table 7-10 feet above grade 8 15 1 Waterfall under deck spills into a biological filter 2 3 7 8 9 14 4 5 6 10 11 3 12 Wooden deck 18 13 14 8 7 16 17 19 20 Retaining wall Rapids Pond 5 2 Gravel walkway 21 22 14 6 Steps over To indoor storage Grass walkway 8 23 1 4 24 26 25 Wooden walkway MARC HOROVITZ I rode the North Coast Limited. My father worked for the Northern Pacific during my growing-up years, which sparked the love affair with the NP. Dad was a coach cleaner and washed the windows of the dome cars when the streamliner rolled into Missoula, Montana. Occasionally, I still get nostalgic as I watch the North Coast Limited roll into one of the towns on the Pacific Northern. Infrastructure First, we began construction in the area that would be the upper switching yard. We carefully placed concrete blocks, outlining the dimensions of the yard and raising it for easier access. We placed the supports every 16", then followed the PVC trackplan out of the yard in both directions. I built the supports and roadbed, with Zachary following behind, fabricating the track to fit the design using a rail bender. We installed code-332 LGB track throughout the railroad, adding brass rail clamps for better electrical continuity. A heavy gauge, solid-core irrigation wire circles the line to provide track power, and jumper wires every 12 to 15 feet provide uniform power feed. It took a year and a half to complete the first phase of The railway at a glance Name: Pacific Northern Railway Size of Railroad: 66' x 52' Scale: 1:29 Gauge: Nº 1 (45mm) Era: Mid 1960s Theme: Class 1 railroading through mountain region Age: 14 years Track: 600', code-332 LGB brass Maximum gradient: 3% Minimum radius: 16' Structures: Kit, kitbashed, scratchbuilt www.gardenrailways.com 37
4. This photo captures a rare occurrence of both eastbound and westbound trains meeting at the station. Notice the staging yard and industries in the background. 5. Headlights illuminate the bridge structure as the train crosses the river. Two lads fish below the bridge while keeping an eye on the bears across the rapids. the trackplan, and the golden rail joiner was installed in late summer of 2003. We could then sit back and watch the trains run continuously for countless hours. One of our goals was to make the railroad accessible to foot traffic. This was part of the initial design and would require a significant amount of decking. To create the illusion of distance, we did not want the whole railroad to be visible from any one point. To achieve this goal we needed to construct retaining walls and bring in backfill to sculpt the hills, mountains, and valleys. We transported more than 1,000 concrete blocks and 150 yards of soil to complete this task. The largest wall is eight feet tall, 30 feet long, and includes about 400 blocks. We contoured the railroad with the soil and created the pond and riverbed. The pond and river course were lined with 45-mil pond liner placed over carpet padding. Multiple tons of rock conceal the pond liner and create the waterfalls. The lower end of the river disappears under the decking and empties into a timber catch basin, which is lined with pond liner and filled with pea gravel, creating a biological filter. Three pumps with valves deliver water to the upper pond. 38 Garden Railways February 2017
Federal Way, Washington, USDA Hardiness Zones 8-9 Plants on the Pacific Northern CONIFERS Snow White dwarf Lawson s cedar Chamaecyparis lawsoniana Snow White Treasure Island dwarf Lawson s cedar Chamaecyparis lawsoniana Treasure Island Wissel s Saguaro dwarf Lawson s cedar Chamaecyparis lawsoniana Wissel s Saguaro Compact Hinoki cypress Compacta Dwarf golden Hinoki cypress Gold Fern Dwarf Hinoki cypress Nana Gracillis Tetragona dwarf golden Hinoki cypress Tetragona Aurea Top Point Atlantic white cedar Chamaecyparis thyoides Top Point Knaptonensis dwarf Japanese cedar Cryptomeria japonica Knaptonensis Tansu dwarf Japanese cedar Cryptomeria japonica Tansu Dwarf Alberta spruce Picea conica Glauca Douglas fir Pseudotsuga menziesii Emerald green arborvitae Thuya occidentalis Smaragd Dwarf weeping hemlock Tsuga canadensis Sargentii SHRUBS AND TREES Assorted dwarf azaleas Azalea sp. Crimson Queen Japanese maple Acer palmatum dissectum Crimson Queen Fireglow Japanese maple Acer palmatum Fireglow Dwarf Japanese maple Shishigashira Acer palmatum Shishigashira Prelude lily-of-the-valley bush Pieris japonica Prelude Korean spindle tree Euonymus koreana Compact Japanese holly Ilex crenata Compacta GROUNDCOVERS Flaxleaf pimpernel Anagallis monelli Miniature brass buttons Leptinella gruveri New Zealand brass buttons Leptinella squalida Black New Zealand brass buttons Leptinella x Platt s Black Corsican mint Mentha requienii Irish moss Sagina subulata Scotch moss Sagina subulata Aurea Baby tears Soleirolia soleirolii Woolly thyme Thymus lanuginosus Mother-of-thyme, Wild thyme Thymus praecox articus Red creeping thyme Thymus praecox Coccineus Elfin thyme Thymus serpyllum Elfin Landscaping With most of the infrastructure completed, it was time to start the actual landscaping. My career as a nurseryman was put to good use in choosing the right selection of plant material. Most of the railroad was in dappled sunlight so we had to be particular with the variety of conifers used. Alberta spruce was used over much of the railroad to convey the northwestern theme. In order to help control the rate of plant growth, we devised a unique planting technique. Plants are sunk into the ground in their containers, with groundcover fabric placed over the drain holes to prevent roots from escaping the pots. The theory was to create natural bonsais. Plant growth has been slowed with no decline in the health of the plant. Groundcovers were carefully selected and 6. A masonry wall creates elevation for the mainline, separating the upper and lower loop. Note the cosmetic wooden retaining wall along the lower right side of the canyon, concealing the actual ground-contact lumber holding the hillside. www.gardenrailways.com 39
7. A switcher exits the yard, entering the mainline to complete the day s waybill. Notice the tools that are scattered outside of the car shop doors. planted in exposures that would allow them to thrive. To prepare for the 2010 National Garden Railway Convention, we needed to complete phase two of the railroad. The elevated portion of the table ranges to 11 feet above ground level at its highest point. We installed pressure-treated posts and stringers to provide the support structure. Cement board forms the table top, which supports the village, industrial sidings, and a 45'-long passing siding. The long passing siding was necessary to accommodate the A-B-B-A consist and 10 passenger cars of the North Coast Limited. Structures are a combination of kit built, kitbashed, and scratchbuilt. The last part of the project to be completed was the decking and stairways. This series of pathways allows visitors to circulate throughout most of the railroad. Many parts can be viewed at waist level, with some spots viewable at eye level. We wanted visitors to feel like part of the railroad. Thanks to the landscaping, the long trains disappear and force guests to imagine greater distances being traveled. We re particularly proud of how convenient it is to start an operating session. We installed a siding that leads to a doggie door, allowing the trains to be run inside for storage. At least 70 cars and engines can be stored under an indoor large-scale Christmas layout, known as the Polar Pacific. Future plans include installing a DCC operating system and adding lighting to all of the structures. We would also like to implement a waybill system that would allow for prototypical railway operations. In the meantime, watching the North Coast Limited traverse the line satisfies our railroading desires. 8. An overview of the lower staging-yard table, the only location of the Pacific Northern s signature passenger train can be passed on a siding, which is more than 40 feet long. About the authors Fred Konkell (left) grew up in Missoula, Montana and attended the University of Montana. In the mid-1960s he moved to Seattle, where he worked for the Boeing Company. Fred and his wife Bernice owned and operated a retail garden center for 21 years before retiring in 2001. He began his railroad career at the age of three when his grandfather bought him a Lionel train set for Christmas. When his grandson Zachary (right) was born in 1992, Fred made sure to teach him how to operate the train under the Christmas tree before his first birthday. Sharing the hobby, Zachary and Fred have developed a strong relationship. The Pacific Northern is a collaborative effort, with each having equal input as the project progressed. The countless hours spent together creating the railway have given them an inseparable bond. 40 Garden Railways February 2017