Because of unexpected progress on the retaining wall earlier in the week a small group went out to the site to work on the retaining wall along with a few other big items. The group, which consisted of Gene, Wes, Robby, and Norm took advantage of the great weather and work on the retaining wall earlier this week to finish installing the wall and fencing. The wall still has some additional work that needs to be finished which includes bringing in crusher run and gravel in order to firm up the ground between the track and the wall. The plan is to complete this step during our next official workday, which is Saturday, March 23rd at 8:30 a.m. We will need people to bring wheelbarrows and shovels in order to bring many loads from the pile over to the wall.

The crew also finished building a switch for the west end of the water line and even got it installed. The crew also moved a switch off the mainline close to the east end of the mainline. The switch was moved to the east end of the water line which will also connect the “Grandma Line” at some point in the future. With the installation of the switches on each end of the water line extension this will allow the railroad to use water line as a mainline and allow traffic traveling from east to west across the main crossing to continue to travel straight and actually not travel through the yard and more. However, before that can happen, we have some finishing work to be completed which includes ballasting all of the new water line extension track and gauge and ballast the existing water line track so it can be used with mainline traffic. The plan is complete this during our next regularly scheduled workday, which is this Saturday, March 23rd at 8:30 a.m. This work will need to be completed before our first public run day which is Saturday, April 13th.

The crew took the last few minutes of the day and installed a board in between the rails on the west end of what will become an access point for the “Grandma Line” for “Bob”. Weather permitting, we are planning on completing the temporary crossing area soon so dirt and other material can be brought in to the “Grandma Line” job site. Be on the lookout for additional details on what additional help may be needed for this project.

One final note about future planned workday events. We have a special work week planned for April 1st through 5th. The plan during the week is to work on the clubhouse and workshop container project. We will be building a stud wall in the first container so we can complete the electrical panel installation and get power into the container. This will allow us to have what is needed in the container for future workdays to begin the next phase of work which includes building out more internal walls in the first two containers as our clubhouse and workshop space begins to take shape. Other items are planned and if you are available to come out one or more days during the week, please let us know.

Our next club meeting is Saturday, April 6th at 1 p.m. and our first Public Run Day Prep Day will also take place on Saturday, April 6th.