Good Afternoon!
Time for a nice cup of coffee!
I feel like presenting a bonus feature of Ulrich´s Train Movie Theatre, which takes us to Norway on one of the most scenic train rides in the world.
In The Hall of The Mountain King (Dovregubben) - Riding the Flåmsbana
The Flåm Line (Norwegian: Flåmsbana) is a 20.2-kilometer (12.6 mi) long railway line between Myrdal and Flåm in Aurland, Norway. A branch line of the Bergen Line, it runs through the valley of Flåmsdalen and connects the mainline with Sognefjord. The line's elevation difference is 863 meters (2,831 ft); it has ten stations, twenty tunnels and one bridge. The maximum gradient is 5.5 percent (1:18). Because of its steep gradient and picturesque nature, the Flåm Line is now almost exclusively a tourist service and has become the third-most visited tourist attraction in Norway.
Construction of the line started in 1924, with the line opening in 1940. It allowed the district of Sogn access to Bergen and Oslo via the Bergen Line. Electric traction was taken into use in 1944; at first El 9 locomotives were used, and from 1982 El 11. Until 1991, the train connected with a ferry service from Flåm to Gudvangen. In 1992, freight services were terminated, and due to low ticket prices and high operating costs, the line was nearly closed. In 1998, Flåm Utvikling took over marketing and ticket sale for the line, prices were heavily increased and El 17 locomotives were introduced. The trains remain operated by the Norwegian State Railways (NSB), while the line itself is owned and operated by the Norwegian National Rail Administration.
Enjoy!
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
I'm going away with the GF for ten days. Don't worry about me. I may check in if I can.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Howdy ..
Jimmy ... Congratulations for your successful presdentation. ... Glad to hear about it.
Ulrich ... Thanks for the video.
Mr. B .... Best wishes.
I posted this in WPF. I'll include it here too.
It is a preview of my bridge proeject. I am connecting an 8' gap between some upper level tracks. Most is with various types of bridges. Much work remains on this project .
At this location it is a steel trestle with a 36" curve in it.
GARRY
HEARTLAND DIVISION, CB&Q RR
EVERYWHERE LOST; WE HUSTLE OUR CABOOSE FOR YOU
Historic day
On May, 26 1934, the Burlington Pioneer Zephyr made its 1015 mile trip from Denver to Chicago in 785 minutes.
Heartland Division CB&Q Historic day On May, 26 1934, the Burlington Pioneer Zephyr made its 1015 mile trip from Denver to Chicago in 785 minutes.
Thanks for that bit of history, Garry!
...and here's a commemorative 10th anniversary cover from the Omaha, Lincoln - Kansas City regular service:
I saw the Zephyr in the Museum of Science and Industry.
Fun Stuff! Ed
gmpullman Heartland Division CB&Q Historic day On May, 26 1934, the Burlington Pioneer Zephyr made its 1015 mile trip from Denver to Chicago in 785 minutes. Thanks for that bit of history, Garry! ...and here's a commemorative 10th anniversary cover from the Omaha, Lincoln - Kansas City regular service: I saw the Zephyr in the Museum of Science and Industry. Fun Stuff! Ed
Ed ... I definately like the post card.
I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, and I could see Burlington trains from my bedroom window. I happened to be looking at a commuter train one day. It was when the CB&Q donated the Pioneer Zephyr to the Museum of Science and Industry. The commuter train was towing the Pioneer Zephyr at the rear of the train. The train had an E8 or E9, some suburban cars (mostly Budd bilevels), and the Pioneer Zephyr facing forward. ... I wish I was close to the track with a camera.
I saw the Pioneer Zephyr at the museum several times when it was next to the submarine. In more recent years, I saw the refurbished train at its location inside near a parking lot.
On this, the eve of the Memorial Day weekend, I would just like to thank all the Veterans among us for their service.
Good Evening Diners,
Brunhilda, I'll have a cup of Earl Grey tea with cream and honey, please.
Steven: To answer your question on influences, I would have to say Linn Westcott and in particular, "The HO Railroad That Grows." I would sit for hours and read and dream of my own railroad. Well, I had one for awhile, but after I got out of high school, we sold the layout and went overseas for a bit. Haven't had a layout since. Not because I didn't want one, but time and space or lack thereof. I know...excuses!
Lion: That is a neat photo. Is it Photoshopped?
Ulrich: That is a lot of food for breakfast. More than I would care to eat.
Hello to everyone, and I hope everyone is OK, safe, and warm.
Jim (with a nod to Mies Van Der Rohe)
Evenin' folks!
Janie I could use a decaf right now and a few of those chocolate chip cookies you have over on the coiunter, please.
Man.... What a wild few days I have had this week. Wednesday I got to take Granddaughter #1 to her softball game after spending most of the day researching stuff for the layout lighting clinic I am giving at the Meet next weekend. Yesterday I spent trying to clean up this pig sty I call home. Did that while jugling several other items I needed to take care of including several phone calls. Since my sister in Canandaigua called last night and chatted for 2 hours, I didn't get the cleaning done so this morning I got up about an hour later than I should have to finish cleaning the kitchen.... Why? Had a group of Scouters from the Handicapped Pack and Troop arriving at 11AM for a more or less mandatory meeting that all units now have to have a couple times a year. We had to work on several items and plan where we need to improve and how we plan to do that for both the pack and the troop. Meeting went exceptionally well and most left by 1:15PM.... One person had about a 40 mile drive round trip to be here. He is the Chartered Partner Head and Representative and this is the first time he has had a chance to actually meet with the committee chair and Scoutmaster/Cubmaster. He may be a great help in the inits getting some needed funding... Most of the families we work with are already hard pressed for cash due to the added costs they face raising handicapped kids.....
Anyway, after the others left the other Commissioner and I did all the bookwork we have to do to put the outcomes of the meeting online for the Council and National Office to show what they are doing and for us to "rate" how the units are doing on a long list of priorities we are supposed to help them with. The other Commissioner drove out the driveway at 5:45 this evening, and then I got working on a bunch of letters to the NMRA Members who still live back in the early 1900's and don't have computers..... Those went into the mailbox about 7:30 this evening, and then I sat down at the computer again to deal with a couple hundred emails I hadn't read over the past couple days....
[color=red]Lion[/color, that kittie cat looks about as friendly as I am at the moment.....
If I get a chance, tomorrow, I may share some photos of what my Mini Clinic will be about... We shall see what we shall see.
Prayers for all in need! Hope you all have a blessed evening!
73
Ray Seneca Lake, Ontario, and Western R.R. (S.L.O.&W.) in HO
We'll get there sooner or later!
BroadwayLion
"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."
Evening Diners
Flo, Ed, Jan and Brent will have a Crown Royal and I will have a please.
Sort of Work Front. Not worth a darn again today. Had 2 people that where looking for $100 to $150 queen sets. Did get a few sales but nothing that will put food on the table.
Blood Sugar front. Sloowly head in the right drection but not what I want. This moring low was 170 which is way to high. But todays high was 232 again way to high but better than it had been which is sad. Main thing is find what I do not react well to. Coffeemate is one of them! I had been using Sugar Free Hazel Nut. I was dumping it in with messureing. Yesterday I went from 170 to 198 blood surgar from drinking coffee only? Today it only went up 8 points.
Green Tea, anyone here drink it? Read some good thing about on lowering your blood sugar so I bought some on the way home.
Train Front I have been very impressed with the Bachmann Sound Value F7A's. They are by far better pulling engines than there counter parts Bachmann DDC on board. 2 F7A's are puling 32 coal cars with seemly no efforts. Just wished they where B&O's F7's.
Later Ken
I hate Rust
Top of a warm evening to all.
Ray, you mentioning your grandaughter and softball brought back fond memories of the few seasons when I coached teenage girls in fastpitch softball, years ago. Girls were much more emotional than boys at that age and I had an easier time coaching boys baseball, that is for sure. One night we had our first playoff game and a lot of the girls had their boyfriends in the stands to watch. Now we had a ringer pitcher, catcher, and shortstop. The rest of the positions we would rotate. WEEEELLLLL! with all the boyfriends in the stands, not one of them would play right field. The umpire said we didn't have a right fielder on the field and I said we will play without one. Our star pitcher and the definite leader on the team dropped the ball on the mound and walked out to right field. She was a real sweetheart. We played one inning with our star pitcher in right field and all of a sudden there were plenty of volunteers for right field. If I remembered we were down by six runs by our first up to bat. Lesson learned.
Father-in-law did have a clot caused by the start of an infection, likely caused by the radiation therapy for his bone cancer. They walked in the door of the hospital at 2330hrs, had an ultrasound and a CT scan, drugs to blow the clot, two antibiotics for the infection and were out the door in exactly two hours. I hope he has an easier time from here on in. He is one of the hardest working people I have ever known even at eighty.
Kid got booked for a bunch of days on a new sitcom yesterday that stars Jason Alexander.
http://www.imdb.com/news/ni61025554/
He then got a call from LosAngeles from a directer to do Hockey stuff for next years Gatorade commercials. It will be done up here and he gets $360.00 for six hours on the rink. If I wasn't so dang ugly I'd start looking for my skates.
I think my daughter is rethinking her summer plans. She had several good paydays last summer working on the movie "Wonder". She was too busy to do any more movie work after that. She sees her brother really bringing in some good money and I saw her revive her booking calendars.
The only problem is while her brother drives himself to work, we have to drive her, and depending on how far away the location is we can get stuck there for 18 hours if it is too far away to come home. That's what books are for, I guess.
Have a good night all, and a good morning to Ulrich.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
G´Night, Brent and Good Morning to All!
The birds made such a heck of a noise at day break, I had no other chance than to get up and start the day!
up831 - I agree, I couldn´t possibly eat that much. My (real) regular breakfast is just a small bowl of chocolate muesli and two mugs of coffee with it. That´s plenty for a good start into the day!
The month is slowly coming to an end and so is Ulrich´s Train Movie Theatre month. There are still a few days left, in which I will present extraordinary trains around the world.
Today´s feature takes us to Africa - to the southernmost tip of this fascinating, but also a little frightening contintent.
An African Fairy Tale - Riding The Pride Of Africa
This epic 15-day train journey travels through South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Tanzania and is one of the most famous in the world. The sojourn begins in Cape Town taking guests to the historic village of Matjiesfontein, the diamond town of Kimberley and the capital city of Pretoria for short tours followed by two nights in the Madikwe Game Reserve. Continue through Botswana into Zimbabwe where guests overnight at the Victoria Falls Hotel. After crossing the mighty Zambezi River, the train joins the Tazara line in Zambia and continues to Chisimba Falls where guests enjoy a bush walk. The train climbs to the Tanzanian border then descends into the Great Rift Valley negotiating the tunnels, switchbacks and viaducts of the spectacular escarpment. Climbing again, it traverses the Selous Game Reserve – the largest on the continent and a vision of timeless Africa – before the bustling arrival in Dar es Salaam the following day.
A journey with The Pride of Africa is ceertainly a once in a lifetime experience, open to only very few. I am happy to share this video with you - a German production for an educational TV channel, hence the narration in the best of Queen´s English!
Good morning campers! We made it safe n' sound to Boston. Caught a very late supper, had to practically drag the fiance away from Boston Harbor.
An artist sees the world in colors and patterns. An engineer sees the world in mathematical equations. Both help shape the World and are just as important as the other.
Cheers, the Bear.
Bear- I argue with myself constantly.
Good morning, everybody .... Coffee and a donut please.
Bear ... You mention Allen McClelland's V&O. I saw it in person several years ago. It certainly was impressive.
Ed ... I'm admiring the large building you are making as you posted in WPF.
Ray .... You said you might post photos of parts of your mini clinic. I will be interested when you do.
Jimmy .... If there are photos in your presentation that you can share, I would like seeing them .
BrassBootleg ... Enjoy Boston.
Ulrich ... The Pride of Africa train video is impressive.
Here is a video of the Zephyr making its historic trip in 1934 from Denver to Chicago.. Notice all of the people at trackside watching.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHe0YSciQao
Happy Model Railroading, everybody.
Time for coffee and a slice of that apple crumble pie, topped with vanilla ice cream & rum raisins - yummy!
Garry - I am glad you liked the video!
Ready for the afternoion bonus program in Ulrich´s Train Movie Theatre? If you like, join me in riding two trains in France! The first part shows a ride with the Chemins de Fer de Provence from Nice to Saint Andre les-Alpes, a scenic route from the beaches of posh Nice to the beautiful mountain retreats in the Mediterranean Alps. The second part explores the beautiful island of Corsica.
I have found a place where I could find the peace of mind I so dearly need! It´s a little house on the Danish island of Aero, which is just a lovely place. It has an extra room which we could use as a bed & breakfast place for paying guests during the summer season, earning some extra cash.
There are only two obstacles to overcome - how to get the money to buy it and how to make Petra like the idea...
up831Lion: That is a neat photo. Is it Photoshopped?
Obviously, but not by me.
I use a WhatchGuard FireBox M200 as our firewall, and that red LION has been their logo fopr some time, they even had a stuffed red LION in the partner's office in WI where I took a course on running the box. I went looking for it, and the Red Lion did not seem to be on their site anymore. Maybe I should write to their webmaster about that.
ROAR
A few more pictures of the place I´d love to call "Mon Repos"
For the asking price, you´d get a double garage in my neck of the woods, but no house ...
http://www.trainboard.com/railimages/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=5959
If one could roll back the hands of time... They would be waiting for the next train into the future. A. H. Francey 1921-2007
Fergie. !!! Wow! Good to see you. Please visit the Diner when you can.
Ulrich .. .. That does look like a nice house.
Lion. .. I was wondering about the red lion picture. At first I thought you had a major blood pressure problem.
Ulrich looks like it needs a new roof. Just for grins how much are they asking?
Location is everything, in California that would be an 800,000 Euro house, in flyover country 300-400,000. 1 Euro = $1.12 these days.
Chama had it's opening day. They double headed 2 steam engines. It may have been a trick of the camera but the second one had distinctly brownish smoke. At Rochelle they have replaced a siding track and at least 6 of 8 track sections entering the double diamond. I wonder how long the diamond itself lasts? seems like they are welding it 4-5 days week.
Thanks to all that served or who lost love ones in wars everywhere.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
Sir MadogFor the asking price, you´d get a double garage in my neck of the woods, but no house ...
Whale... I sure hope you can swing that one.
BigDaddyUlrich looks like it needs a new roof. Just for grins how much are they asking?
Asking price is 100k Euros, but you will get it for 80k. Petra doesn´t like the idea if moving to an island far aqay from where our son lives, who is visiting us maybe 3 times a year. Oh, mothers!
Lion - I have 800 Euros, leaving only 79,200 to go, with the rate I am able to save up, I can buy the place in 99 years!
Yes this is an unusual time for me to be stopping it. My back decided to act up and I only managed to make it to a half hour after lunch. Reason for the half hour after lunch is that, as part of my job, there is a duty that I do every day that I work. It involves the technology that we use. I have been asked to do the inventory for what's not in storage or what's been put in the wrong place.
On other subjects, I started drinking green tea due to the fact that I am told that it has anti-pain properties. I have noticed that it does help with my knees especially. (Although today it obviously didn't help with my back!) Some days are better than others when it comes to my knees. My doctor has told me that eventually I will need to have knees worked on, but the longer I can put it off the better.
Ulrich: I know the feeling. I had looked for my own place probably 5-10 years ago and my bank, not directly but, basically told me to forget it. It's almost to the point that I feel like I would need to win the lottery to be able to even think about getting my own place. My Mom has "presented" some ideas even though I am not actively looking. In a perfect world, what I want to do involves 4 45' long 9'tall ISBUs (aka retired railroad shipping containers). 2 would be living area and the other 2 would be a "shop" area aka monster railroad room. Not common in my neck of the woods, but I have always been one of these people that doesn things differently. Not that I ever expect it to happen, but one can always dream.
Afternoon Diners
Flo, Ed, Jan, Brent, Ja Bear and I will have a please.
Was not going to drink beer tonight, but then my wife started talking! Her tablet stopped working (Windows 10 touch screen) and wanted me to get it on line. OK, don't like touch screens nor windows 10 but I give it a try. It would not go on line one other time, I was able to get it going again.
Ever time I started to touch something she said Don't touch that! If she said that when I meet her, I still be single! I finally gave up, I am guessing I need the WFI Password, showed a lock symbol next to WYFI. Touched the lock and the keyboard appeared. Wife said Don't touch that! So I didn't. 95% sure that is the problem.
Bear Had my first taste of Green Tea. While I have drank fouler stuff Doctors made me do it. Got down 2 cups and will use all I bought. I will try other brands.
FRRYKidOn other subjects, I started drinking green tea due to the fact that I am told that it has anti-pain properties. I have noticed that it does help with my knees especially
Funny you brought that up Kid. Last week my knees started hurting a little. On a scale of 1 to 10 I would say 2. Couple of hours after I had the Green Tea they stopped hurting.
Ulrich Watched the Valley Of The Moutain King and I have two things two say.
1 Enjoyed the Video.
2 Why would people want to live there? Yea, it is sure pretty! Guess they heard goats and cow's for a living. Be born in the Midewet flat lands seem a little odd to me.
Later, Ken
"It is not always the strongest, or the fastest, or even the bravest that earn the title of warrior. But rather, it is always the one who chooses to put himself in between those that he loves and those that would seek to do them harm."
Here's to Senior Chief Morris, the finest block a salt I ever had the pleasure of knowing. It's smooth seas ahead, strong wind at our backs, Chief. Rest easy, we have the watch.
Y'all meet me at the Officers' Club, first round is on me, second round is on the lowest coin. And no, that's just dust in my eye from the tracks, dammit. Bit a rust!
Good Morning!
I did not catch much sleep last night. I must have been waiting for the announced thunderstorm to come, which did not show up. Now I feel beat, so I need my morning coffee in an IV bag, Zoe! No breakfast yet, it´s too early for that. I´ll come back later for that!
Ken - the little village of Flåm located at the Sognefjord used to be a tiny farming community with people having a hard time to make a living. They had to be self-sustaining, as there was no other connection to the outside world than by boat. That changed in the late 1800´s, when tourism discovered the beauty of Norway´s fjords. Each year, the village sees half a million tourists and the village folks know how to milk them! Myrdal at the other end is just a station in the middle of nowhere, where people can change trains for Oslo or Bergen.
Only 4 more days until Ulrich´s Train Movie Theatre closes until further notice, so better hurry up and reserve a seat!
Today´s feature takes us into a world most like lost forever.
Scheherazade´s Tales - The Lost Railway
The Hedjaz Railway was a narrow gauge railway (1,050 mm/3 ft 5 11⁄32 in gauge) that ran from Damascus to Medina, through the Hedjaz region of Saudi Arabia, with a branch line to Haifa on the Mediterranean Sea. It was a part of the Ottoman railway network and was built to extend the line from the Haydarpaşa Terminal in Kadikoy beyond Damascus to the holy city of Mecca. It got no further than Medina, 400 kilometres (250 mi) short of Mecca, due to the interruption of the construction works caused by the outbreak of World War I. Damascus to Medina is 1,300 kilometres (810 mi).
The main purpose of the railway was to establish a connection between Constantinople, the capital of the Ottoman Empire and the seat of the Islamic Caliphate, and Hedjaz in Arabia, the site of the holiest shrines of Islam and the holy city of Mecca, the destination of the Hajj annual pilgrimage. Another important reason was to improve the economic and political integration of the distant Arabian provinces into the Ottoman state, and to facilitate the transportation of military forces.
The railway had no debt when completed.
A railway had been suggested in 1864 to relieve the suffering of the hajis on their 40-day journey through the wilderness of Midian, the Nafud, and the Hedjaz Mountains. About 20% of them commonly died from starvation, thirst and diseases. The railway was basically a sub project of the Berlin-Bagdad Railway and started in 1900 at the behest of the Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid II and was built by the German Civil Engineer Heinrich August Meißner and financed by the Deutsche Bank and strongly supported by the German Empire. A public subscription was opened throughout the Islamic world to fund construction. However in 1912 the Ottoman Empire was owing the Deutsche Bank 29 million Turkey Pounds. The railway was to be a waqf, an inalienable religious endowment or charitable trust.Before the construction, German military adviser in Constantinople Auler Pasha estimated that the transportation of soldiers from Constantinople to Mecca would be reduced to 120 hours. The Berlin to Baghdad Railway was built in the same time. The railways were interrelated and aimed to strengthen the authority of the Empire over Arab provinces. Another intention was to protect Hejaz and other Arab provinces from British invasion. Other than the Haydarpasa-Izmit line, the Hejaz Railway was the only railway the Empire built itself in its existence. Due to its reliance on charitable donation to cover costs, and mounting pressure from competing Britain and France, construction stalled, ending up taking significantly longer to finish than anticipated.
Following WW I, the line fell more or less dormant, as traffic along the entire line was never restored. Parts came into operation, but fell again victim to the various wars in this turmoil stricken region.