2007 Update

March 2007

The elves at the Vines Garden Railroad have really been busy during the winter months. They have had some help! Our latest member and volunteer to the Vines Garden Railroad is Ron Nelson. Welcome aboard Ron and thank-you for your help.

The lake and waterfall have now been completed. Although somewhat larger than scale dimension, an old style hand water pump provides an added attraction to the scene.

The new fourth track has been laid, ballasted and graded. Wiring has been extended and a power supply added to provide 20,000 mV to the new line. All tracks are now operational, test runs have been completed, and we should be ready for the May 6th. 2007 opening.

A second airport is now under construction. Vines Municipal Airport; this is located adjacent to the ravine, a short drive from the City of Vines. Additional buildings and vehicles are expected to be arriving shortly

On or about June 28th. 2007 vandals broke in to the locomotive barn and stole the CSX SD-45 and Chessie GP-7 locomotives together with the Burlington caboose. Damage to the locomotive barn, various freight cars and the destruction of some of the model buildings was also recorded. Unfortunately there is no insurance for this type of damage and theft as the premiums are far in excess for our volunteer operation.

We really appreciate and wish to give special thanks to North American Security who donated and installed an intrusion alarm system at the site. Although this will not guarantee against future losses or damage it becomes a good deterrent when intruders may be identified and apprehended.

On the subject of donations we also wish to thank our visitors and corporate sponsors who, during the 2007 season, gave much to help us cover our running costs. Sufficient funds were also received to allow us to purchase and install sound units for those locomotives which were running 'silent'.

Unfortunately, at the beginning of the season, we lost Johnny Johnson to the group due to personal commitments. We wish to thank Johnny for all of his help during his time with us. At about the same time we were able to welcome a new volunteer to the Vines Garden Railroad operations. William "Bill" O'Morrissey. Bill will be helping us with the landscaping and "urban development" in the area.

In September, Barry Reade joined the group. A keen model railroader, Barry operates his own garden layout and is a long time member of the Georgia Garden Railroad Society. We appreciate being able to share in his knowledge and expertise.

Tentative track plans have been drawn up to incorporate a wye in the layout. A wye is shaped like the letter "Y," but with a connection between the two outstretched arms of the "Y" .

In actual prototype operation this allows for a complete train to be turned around in the absence of turntables and storage track. For the Vines Garden Railroad this is not only designed for just turning trains around but enhancing the operation of train movement by switching from one track to another and run in the correct direction.