i know its a little bit simplistic but there is a lot of water that isn’t drawable in the layout program i used (Anyrail)
There is a river running from the top to the bottom of the layout about a third of a way in from the left and then the bottom 6" or so, about 32" wide is ocean/harbor and there is a 14" oval cove on the right side in the bottom of the right circle
looking for feedback, mistakes i’ve made/overlooked etc.
matthew
What is your question? It is not a problem to have rivers and harbors on the layout, as long as they blend into the scenery and you manage your railroad to cross them where necessary. You can make causeways if you need to cross a harbor or lake, bridges to cross streams and rivers. As long as they look realistic, go for it.
Don’t know if this answers your question or not.
Have fun,
Richard
I was just looking for feedback.
thanks
Hi Matthew,
you have a nice 8x4 for setting up a N-scale layout. You will probably need access to three sides since you can’t reach in over 30".
The minimum radius of 18 will allow you to run long modern cars. Which is great, however where are these cars going to? I see a wye connection to a future extension. On the modeled part however you can switch only two spurs, if your train is heading in the right direction, and you can do a bit of running around on 2 ovals.
Possibly you are thinking merely in scenic options. Where a river meets the sea a little port could be made. To facilitate the port some spurs, a yard and a run-around could be added. In the March MR-mag another harbour railroad on an 8x4 sheet is shown. This one is perhaps to urban to your taste, IMHO some more tracks would do well on your plan.
Smile
Paul
Thank you for the input/suggestions I am lucky enough to have a rather large basement so I definitely plan on a bunch of ntrak like modules There will be a lot of detail going on in the harbor and on the river including a large n scale lighthouse just about centered on the bottom just below the long stretch It’s a mash up of my original concept and a plan from the layout database on modelrailroader magazine If you search their database for waterfront as the keyword only two or three come up I’m hoping with the conversion to n scale I’ll have room to add a couple of sidings Matthew
For some reason, last night your diagram wasn’t showing, so now your question has some backing, you should be able to get some input. Seems like you have a good start with the above input. Having track leading off both ends (or at least two places) will make adding more later much easier.
If you are planning on expanding by adding modules, definitely do some planning ahead, so that your extensions will flow together.
Have fun,
Richard
Is it to be as Paulas Jas’s layout shows? We assume that you have access to three sides. What is the purpose of the circle on the right side? Wouldn’t it be better to bend the bottom left of the circle to form a figure 8? The left side looks like it could be made into a wye. Are you planning on expansion of the layout? What industries do you plan to be next to the river and harbor? How about the following layout plan? Bob Hahn 
Click on the photo to enlarge it. Then click on “Previous” or “Next” arrows to see other views of my 24’x24’ around the room layout, (with two harbors and two cascading rivers), to get some ideas. 
Another idea would be to make a Island or Peninsula layout with a divider down the middle. The second photo is against the wall. but could have been a divider to your river. Note how the river curves out of sight. This adds to the forced perspective, and makes the layout much more interesting.
It was your friendly neighborhood moderator who made the diagram visible - always at your service!
Thank you Ulrich. Always nice to know that you are vigilently patrolling the forums.
Have fun,
Richard