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MARCH
2007 Members Tour
Bruce & Paula JOHNSON held the March meet for the Southwest Division.
Fourteen road warriors headed for Miami in the big, big bus on March 3rd. After 3 fun-filled
hours on the road, telling the biggest stories they could think of, with plenty of drinks
(followed by a few potty stops) they arrived at the Johnson’s ranch in sunny Redlands, FL.
The ranch is nestled among dozens of vegetable farms in the southern heartland of Florida.
Luckily, the Johnson’s had put up little white “Train” signs for the driver to follow through the fields.
The huge bus amazed the Johnson’s as it squeezed through their gate. Everyone on the bus was
equally stunned to see the beautiful Florida style house out there in the country, and the 30 by 80 air-conditioned “train house” complete with restrooms and a Santa’s workshop. The entire building is
filled with trains running all over the place. Everyone gleefully took turns squeezing into the isle-ways,
taking in the incredibly detailed scenes everywhere they looked. Beautiful structures and scenery
abounded, and sound effects were everywhere, bringing the scenes to life with elegance and humor.
The trains were as impressive as the scenery. All the diesels were running in multiple unit lash-ups,
and many interesting consists were represented. Up to three steam and diesel powered trains went
careening around each of the three mainlines, narrowly avoiding collisions as they sped through the
passing sidings. The sidings are automatically controlled by sensors and circuitry that provide fully
automatic control of the multiple trains running on each track.
Click on each photo for the Enlarged picture Enjoy!
The Gang and the Bus The snow covered hillside.
A view of the scenery and hillside.
A view looking at a different angle.
A different angle of the town. A view of the mountains.
Different levels of the layout.
A set of trolley's passing by.
The Winter scene...
A different view.
