Taller cliffs for the In-ko-pah RR

[Ray Dunakin]

I'm currently in the process of rebuilding the upper part of the cliffs on the eastern half of the layout. I’ve never been satisfied with this portion of the cliffs. It was very steep and had pressure-treated 2x8 planks visibly supporting the slope at the very top of the hill. In late December 2009, I finally decided to rebuild the top of the cliff, making it taller and more stable, while also hiding the planks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Here’s a look at the project under construction so far... . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html . . . . . . . . . .

[Ray Dunakin]

I haven't been able to make any new progress the past couple days due to illness. Cris and I have both had bad colds since Christmas Eve. I was hoping to make another trip to get rocks this evening but that will have to wait too.

[PJM20]

Those are some impressive cliffs! Sorry about the cold and keep the pictures coming. - Peter

[Ray Dunakin]

After being idled by a bad cold, and then having a busy schedule early in the week, I've finally made a little more progress on the cliff rebuilding project. Part of this project includes finishing the upper end of the stairs on this side of the layout, and I've made some progress there too. The most recent pics begin here: http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#3

[Ray Dunakin]

I got some more work done on it today. Added some more texturing at the top of the stairs, put in a lot of concrete blocks and mortar behind the clifftop, and reworked part of the clifftop until I ran out of black rocks to match the rocks on the cliff. Here's the pics from today's work session: http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#7 Tomorrow after church I'm planning to head out to pick up some more black rocks, and a few other things.

[Ray Dunakin]

Well, I made it out to the desert yesterday and picked up a pretty good load of rocks. Got some black rocks, some purplish gray rocks, and some pinkish granite rocks. Today I only had a couple hours to work on the RR, but I managed to get a lot done. I did a little more texturing at the top of the stairs, but mostly I concentrated on mountain-building. And I have step by step photos showing how I put together rocks to form a natural-looking mountain top, while also hiding a conduit and creating a hidden channel so I can run low-voltage wire from the conduit to a newly-repositioned junction box. The pics begin here, starting with some shots of the rocks I picked up yesterday and showing how I separate them according to color prior to use: http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#12 Enjoy!

[ttrigg]

No wonder California is falling off in the ocean.  Ray’s hauling rocks again!  But I do like it, the mountain, I mean.

[Ray Dunakin]

I haven't had a lot of time to work on the RR these past couple days but I did get a few things done, including a bit more progress on the cliff. I extended a short vein of quartz, so that it now goes all the way up the mountain. Did some more texturing at the top of the stairs, and started working on a "foundation" for the next area of expansion on the cliffs. The new pics begin here: . . . . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#26 . . . . . . . . .

[g. gage]

Wow Ray; I thought I live on a hillside. I’m a Central Valley Flatlander compared to you; Beautiful work.

 

Have fun, Rob   

 

[MTCarpenter]

Yeah, this is great stuff.  Very inspiring!!

[Ray Dunakin]

Thanks! I didn't get to work on the layout today but should be able to get something done on it tomorrow.

[Ray Dunakin]

Wasn't able to get any work done on the layout Thursday, but I did do a little today. The latest pics start here: . . . . . . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#35 .. . . . . .

[Ray Dunakin]

Despite a few interruptions, I managed to get a lot done on the cliff rebuild today. I built some new, natural looking formations using my "basic brown rocks" and raised that section of the cliff by about two feet. The new pics start here: . . . . . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#43 . . . . . . . Tomorrow afternoon we're going to our GR club's meeting, so I probably won't get anything done on the layout. Monday we're supposed to be hit by a major storm, or series of storms, lasting all week, with heavy, possibly record-setting rain. We haven't had such a big storm in years, long before I built the layout, so it'll be interesting to see how it handles that much rain. . . . . . . . . . . I wish I could have completed the rebuild first... I don't like having that exposed cut in the top of the hill. This evening I loaded some blocks and stones into the cut -- hopefully this will prevent loose soil being washed down onto the layout, or potentially damaging the unfinished section of the cliff. . . . . .

[ttrigg]

They say we are supposed mto get 8 or more inches of rain this week.  For us that is about 2~3 months worth of water.  I've even lowered the water level in the Koi pond to prevent overflow.  Ray, here's hoping the rain causes no damage to your project.

[Ray Dunakin]

Right now my biggest concern is that it'll drive me nuts not being able to work on it all week! :) . . . . . .

[g. gage]

Our three feet of Sierra Cement finally melted enough to shovel the railroad clear for two days of running. Our forecast shows rain today through Tuesday turning to snow everyday through Sunday, the end of the forecast. They’re saying this is the first of a series of El Nino storms and predicting 10’ of snow in the Northern Sierra; I hope that’s for the ski areas, not us.

 

Wishing you best of luck Ray; Sincerely Rob

 

[Rex in Pinetop]

The weather guys are predicting 3-5 feet of snow on my layout in Pinetop, AZ.  At least I won't have to go up and water the trees for awhile.  We can sure use the water!

Rex

[Ray Dunakin]

Here in San Diego, they've downgraded the forecast quite a bit. Instead of heavy rain Mon-Fri, now it's "periods of rain" on Monday, afternoon showers on Tuesday, showers Weds, and rain on Thur/Fri. I think the weather people here get so excited at the chance to report on real weather for a change, that they tend to blow things out of proportion in the early forecasts. Anyway, it looks like I'll at least get to do some work on the layout this week.

[Ray Dunakin]

Time for another update... . . . . . . . . On Monday we only had a few brief, light sprinkles in the morning, so I got some work done on the cliffs. I cemented some stones in place along the top of the cliff, that I had positioned the night before, and added a few more. I also started what will eventually be a small mine tunnel which leads out onto a shelf on the cliff. And I started modifying an area at the base of the cliff, next to a RR tunnel portal. I'm trying to reshape that part of the cliff, as well as adding a little more detail. . . . . . . . . . . I finished around noon on Monday, and by 1:30 the major rains hit. We got 1.4" of rain at our house on Monday, plus high winds. The rain had no effect on the RR! Both the exposed cut, and the fresh mortar, were undamaged. . . . . . . . . Today (Tuesday) I got a late start. There was no rain at first but it started coming down pretty hard by noon and I had to quit. But I did make some progress. I shaped up the "trench" that will become a mine tunnel, and added some texturing to the interior. I also added more stone to the area I'm modifying near the base of the cliff. I set the last few stones in mortar while getting drenched by the rain! Fortunately the mortar sets quickly, and very little of it is exposed anyway -- most is hidden behind the rocks. We got 0.75" of rain by the end of the day. . . . . . . . . . . The new pics start here: . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#54 . . . . . . . . . . . . . So far it looks like tomorrow's storm will hold off long enough for me to get a little more work done in the morning. . . . . . .

[ttrigg]

Ray: I’m very interested in your “aluminum foil” texture process.  Q: Do you mix in different colors into the mortar or do you apply the color after removing the foil?  I’ve been trying to think of a way to apply texture to the inside of my tunnel under the falls.  I’m thinking that I just might “steal” your method. I’ve put some mortar inside by the “finger-full” method but form and color don’t look so swift.

[Ray Dunakin]

I mix the colors into the mortar. The colors are made by Quikrete, and come in plastic bottles. The colors I use are Brown, Buff, Red, and Charcoal (black). Home Depot has all but the Charcoal -- currently I can only get that from Lowes. I rarely use the red, and when I do it's in minute quantities -- the stuff is pretty intense. Most of the time I mix a little Charcoal with some Brown and/or Buff. I don't really measure it, I just "eyeball" it -- a splash of this, a dab of that, stir it up and see how it looks. In a few special cases, I'll pour or spatter some color straight onto the foil before spreading the colored mortar on the foil. It would probably work better to have two different colored mixes, and I've actually done that a time or two, but I'm usually moving too fast to bother doing that.

[Ray Dunakin]

Today, the rain held off until about 2:30 in the afternoon, so I was able to get a little work done on the cliffs. I built up the sides at the rear of the mine tunnel, and covered that end with a concrete block. Later I'll texture the interior, then work on covering the rest of the tunnel (currently just a trench). . . . . . . . . Most of my time was spent remodeling the lower portion of the cliff. I added more rock to the area I had been working on yesterday. I also put in a lot of smaller rocks at the base of the cliff, and used small rocks to add detail to other parts of the cliff face. And I created a new vein of quartz, which zigzags from the base at track level, up more than two feet. Later I will extend it further. . . . . . . . . I've also posted some pics and info regarding storage and mixing of mortar. . . . . . . . . . New pics start here: . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#64 . . . . . . . . . . We're supposed to have heavy rain all day tomorrow and Friday, so I may not get anything more done until Saturday. . . . . . .

[Ray Dunakin]

I have some new photos from the past several days of work on the cliffs. I've finished the mine tunnel, which was complicated by poor planning on my part. I also built up the mountain over the mine, extended the quartz vein further up the cliff, and did some detail work on the lower portions of the cliff. . . . . . . . . New pics start here: . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#73. . . . . . . . .

[Rex in Pinetop]

Can you give us an idea of what you plan for your mining operation?  Will there be rails going into the mine?  What happens to the ore that comes out of the mine?  Does it go down the cliff through some sort of chutte into a tupple for transfer?

Curious,

Rex

[Ray Dunakin]

Rex in Pinetop

Can you give us an idea of what you plan for your mining operation?  Will there be rails going into the mine?  What happens to the ore that comes out of the mine?  Does it go down the cliff through some sort of chutte into a tipple for transfer?

I haven't really decided yet. This mine sort of "just happened".... as I was remodeling the cliffs, I saw a spot that seemed like a natural place to put in a mine tunnel, so I did. I do think that I will probably have some tracks coming out of the mine, possibly leading to a tailings dump and/or an ore chute of some kind. As I envision it, this mine tunnel is just part of the nearby complex of mines (additional tunnels exist, but no structures yet). Often in mines of this type, they will open a tunnel out at another level just to have a convenient place to dump rock, without having to haul it all the back to the main entrance.

[Ray Dunakin]

I've added a lot of new photos showing major progress on the cliff rebuild. . . . . . . . New pics start here: . . . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#81 . . . . . . . I finished the quartz vein, which now extends all the way up to the top of the mountain. The mountaintop in that section has also been completed. . . . . . . . . . . Next I tore out a lot of existing rock in order to create a shallow "canyon" effect in the cliff, and also to create a much more natural looking formation. This photo shows the area to be altered, outlined in red: . . . . . . . . . . And these two photos shows it after completion: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I'm now beginning work on the area west of the "canyon". . . .

[ttrigg]

It has been reported that the mountains just to the east of Anza-Borrego have been shrinking. Geologists have reported that the west end of the runways at Miramar are subsiding.  Any idea where those rocks have been going? 

Magnificent as usual.

   

 

[Ray Dunakin]

Another update on the cliffs project... I've made a lot of progress in the past few days. In the newest area, I've extended a wide band of pink and red rocks, plus another quartz vein and a thin, short vein of dark rocks. Also built up a new mountain peak. . . . . . . . . . New pics start here: . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#115 . . . . . . . . . . I'll soon be coming to the end of major work for this project. Once the major work is done, then I'll just have to do some detail work -- filling in some gaps between large rocks along the lower portion of the cliffs, adding some more talus, etc. . . . . . . . . .

[Ray Dunakin]

The cliff rebuild is finished! (Well, mostly...) . . . . . Here are some "before" and "after" photos: . . . . . . . BEFORE: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AFTER: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BEFORE: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AFTER: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I still have to do a few minor things, but that will have to wait until after we host our GR club meeting on Saturday. . . . . . . . . . . . . This project turned out so nicely, I've decided to touch up the west end of the cliffs as well. "Phase Two" won't be such a big project, there are just a couple small areas that need work. . . . . . . . . .

[Ray Dunakin]

I finally got around to extending the top of the cliffs on the west end of the layout. . . . . . . . . . . . Here are the "before" and "after" photos: . . . . . . . . BEFORE: . . . . . . . . . . . . . AFTER: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . At this point I only had enough rocks left to fill in the low spots along the top of the cliff, and hide the boards. Later when I get more rocks, I'd like to raise the entire section another 6-12 inches. . . . . . .