|
Rocky
Mountain House, Leaverite & Northern Railway
LAYOUT
AT A GLANCE 
Railway Pages Index
| Name:
|
Rocky
Mountain House, Leaverite & Northern Railway |
|
| Scale/Gauge: |
G Scale / 3 Foot Narrow Gauge 1:22.5
+/- a bit |
| Size: |
16
x 36 feet, multi-level, outdoors |
| Trackage: |
225 feet mainline, 40 feet in yards
LGB Code 332 |
| Rolling
Stock: |
15 locomotives and powered
units,
42 freight cars
9 passenger cars |
| Population: |
30
people and children
20 animals and birds |
| Prototype: |
Freelance DSP&P |
| Locale: |
Western
Foothills and Rocky Mountains |
| Period: |
1880
- 1890 |
| Scenery: |
Rocks, rocks, more rocks, redwood bark mulch |
| Sound: |
LGB steam engine, cattle, sheep sounds, ambient
sound with thunder, wolves, loons, distant trains |
| Operation: |
Single track mainline, manual switching for sidings and
storage tracks |
| Power: |
PH Hobbies
10 amp dual track transformer |
| Control: |
Manual |
| Track: |
LGB
1600 curves, 1600 switches |
| Couplers
/ Wheels: |
USA
Trains knuckle couplers, Dean Lowe metal wheels |
| Visitors: |
Welcome
by appointment 1-403-845-2527 |
History
of the R.M.H., L. & N. Ry.
The Rocky Mountain House, Leaverite and Northern Railway is an
outdoor,
large scale model railroad, nominally 1:22.5 or G Scale 3 foot
narrow gauge running on Gauge 1 (45 mm) track. It is a
little-known Canadian subsidiary of the Denver, South Park &
Pacific Railroad, serving the fictitious towns of Leaverite and
Glacier in west central Alberta.
Overall view of Rocky
Mountain House, Leaverite & Northern Railway,
taken from below the Big Rock.
The town of Leaverite received its name from the ranchers' term for
large glacial erratics (rocks) left over from the last ice age - - -
"leave 'er right there. it's too big to move". The largest leaverite
in the world is at
Okotoks, Alberta, about 160 miles
south of the RMH, L&N location. Okotoks is a Blackfoot word for "Big
Rock". Calgary, the major city close to the Big Rock, is the home of a well known brewery, sending Big
Rock beer across North America.
 The
Okotoks rock weighs in at 16,500 tons and travelled about 400 miles
from Mount Edith Cavell, near Jasper. The biggest rock on the RMH,L&N
weighs 4 tons and is about the size of an old Volkswagon. This
monster, plus a dozen smaller rocks, were found on our ranch as we
cleared bushland for grazing pastures.
Placing
leaverites on the RMH,L&N garden railway.
The RMH,L&N is about as small a garden railway as can be built
and still be interesting. It is 16 x 36 feet with a two level
mainline laid out as a folded dog-bone. The large rocks hide the
train from view in many places. We generally run two trains
following each other, making for some interesting operational
problems.
A
three train parking garage is hidden under the comfortable seating
and three other trains are stored on display modules in the adjacent
screen porch. A crushed brick sidewalk provides access on all sides
of the railway.
All locomotive, revenue freight, and passenger equipment is on lease
from the Denver, South Park & Pacific Railroad. These include 6
Moguls, 2 Consolidations, a 2-6-6T Mason Bogie, and a 2-4-4T Forney.
Maintenance of Way equipment is on loan from the
Rocky Mountain House,
Nordegg and Pacific Railway. Almost all the rolling stock
has been modified or kit-bashed in some way to make it unique to
this railway.
Photo Gallery
of the R.M.H., L. & N. Ry.
Photos by the author except where noted.
Entrance to
parking garage (under seats) and Glacier Tunnel (left photo) and
overall view of north end of railway, town of Leaverite (foreground)
and Big Rock (background) - Leo deGroot photos.
DSP&P Moguls 17 and 18 pull a seven car passenger express northbound
on the Highline, DSP&P Mason Bogie #15 "Breckenridge" leads a reefer
consist into Glacier Tunnel.
Head shot of #15 "Breckenridge" about to enter
Glacier Tunnel with the Express on
the Highline above.
Kit-bashed waycar #69 trails the reefers
through Glacier Tunnel.
The double headed express snakes into Glacier
station.
Big Rock stands above the express as it pulls into Glacier station,
Middle Rock and Little Rock stand behind the station.
DSP&P #15 enters Leaverite in front of the
Pioneer grain elevator after clearing
Glacier Tunnel.
DSP&P #15 leaves Leaverite, approaching Bridge
#1, a pony truss.
The double headed express and the reefer drag
meet again on the southbound run, held
up on the steeply sloping side yard by more leaverites.
C&S #5 heads the MOW train past Rocking "Are"
Ranch, pushing the snowplow, which
subs as a track cleaning car.
Broadside of the reefer drag with
"Breckenridge" at the point.
"Breckenridge" pulls onto Trestle #3 while the
tail car approaches Trestle #2, passing the
derrick for the Crain #1 oil well.
"Breckenridge" leaves Trestle #4 and
approaches the Lower Steel Bridge, while the
express crosses Upper Steel Bridge.
The double header
crosses over the MOW train at Shadow Lake while
"Breckenridge" pulls onto the Lower Steel Bridge.
"Breckenridge" starts the long pull up the
3.5% grade of Climax to the Highline.
Finishing the 3.5% grade on the sharp curve
takes a sensitive hand on the throttle
to prevent spin-outs.
DSP&P Mogul # 18 with a four car passenger
train crosses over Shadow
Lake and
MOW snow train.
"Breckenridge" on the high trestle approaching
Glacier station, crossing over C&S #5
with the snowplow train.
The snowplow is about to enter Glacier Tunnel
with "Breckenridge" on the Highline.
"Breckenridge" pauses for orders after taking
on water at Glacier tank.
The Sunday local leaves Leaverite in the early
morning sun.
C&S #5 hauls LCL freight and open loads of
steam traction, thrasher, and new-fangled
automobiles across Lower Steel Bridge, with Big Rock overseeing
operations.
C&S #5 on Trestle #3 with the open loads.
C&S Mogul #5 on Trestle #3.
The open loads southbound.
DSP&P Consolidation #63 heads out with the
local way freight.
#63 crossing Trestles 3 and 4 with the local
freight in front of Middle Rock and Big Rock.
Trestle #3 carries DSP&P #63 with Gorre and
Daphetid boxcar and Victor Mining gondola
full of gold ore.
DSP&P Mogul #71 heading south with the daily through
freight with waycar #69 on the tail.
Sunshine on Leaverite country, with DSP&P Mogul #71 crossing the Lower Steel
Bridge.
DSP&P #71 on Trestle #3 (left) and running through Glacier
(right) - Leo deGroot
photos.
DSP&P Consolidation #64 pushes Rotary 02 enroute to Climax Hill. See
more snow train action Here.
Satellite photo-mosaic of Rocky Mountain House, Leaverite & Northern
Railway. North is to the right.
Click here for larger image
(300 Kb)
Display modules: Lost
Lemon Mine (left) with Brewster, an 0-2-2-0 working the ore car,
Daly Glen Tank and Station (center), Foggy Bottom Lighthouse and
Poisson Ratio's Fish Plant (right).
Click here for larger image
(1.0 Mb)
Continue to RMH,N&P Ry Snow Fighting
Trains
Railway Pages Index |
