I’m currently in the process of rebuilding the upper part of the cliffs on the eastern half of the layout. I’ve never been satisfied with this portion of the cliffs. It was very steep and had pressure-treated 2x8 planks visibly supporting the slope at the very top of the hill. In late December 2009, I finally decided to rebuild the top of the cliff, making it taller and more stable, while also hiding the planks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Here’s a look at the project under construction so far… . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html . . . . . . . . . .
I haven’t been able to make any new progress the past couple days due to illness. Cris and I have both had bad colds since Christmas Eve. I was hoping to make another trip to get rocks this evening but that will have to wait too.
Those are some impressive cliffs! Sorry about the cold and keep the pictures coming. - Peter
After being idled by a bad cold, and then having a busy schedule early in the week, I’ve finally made a little more progress on the cliff rebuilding project. Part of this project includes finishing the upper end of the stairs on this side of the layout, and I’ve made some progress there too. The most recent pics begin here: http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#3
I got some more work done on it today. Added some more texturing at the top of the stairs, put in a lot of concrete blocks and mortar behind the clifftop, and reworked part of the clifftop until I ran out of black rocks to match the rocks on the cliff. Here’s the pics from today’s work session: http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#7 Tomorrow after church I’m planning to head out to pick up some more black rocks, and a few other things.
Well, I made it out to the desert yesterday and picked up a pretty good load of rocks. Got some black rocks, some purplish gray rocks, and some pinkish granite rocks. Today I only had a couple hours to work on the RR, but I managed to get a lot done. I did a little more texturing at the top of the stairs, but mostly I concentrated on mountain-building. And I have step by step photos showing how I put together rocks to form a natural-looking mountain top, while also hiding a conduit and creating a hidden channel so I can run low-voltage wire from the conduit to a newly-repositioned junction box. The pics begin here, starting with some shots of the rocks I picked up yesterday and showing how I separate them according to color prior to use: http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#12 Enjoy!
No wonder is falling off in the ocean. Ray’s hauling rocks again! But I do like it, the mountain, I mean.
I haven’t had a lot of time to work on the RR these past couple days but I did get a few things done, including a bit more progress on the cliff. I extended a short vein of quartz, so that it now goes all the way up the mountain. Did some more texturing at the top of the stairs, and started working on a “foundation” for the next area of expansion on the cliffs. The new pics begin here: . . . . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#26 . . . . . . . . .
Wow Ray; I thought I live on a hillside. I’m a Central Valley Flatlander compared to you; Beautiful work.
Have fun, Rob
Yeah, this is great stuff. Very inspiring!!
Thanks! I didn’t get to work on the layout today but should be able to get something done on it tomorrow.
Wasn’t able to get any work done on the layout Thursday, but I did do a little today. The latest pics start here: . . . . . . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#35 … . . . . .
Despite a few interruptions, I managed to get a lot done on the cliff rebuild today. I built some new, natural looking formations using my “basic brown rocks” and raised that section of the cliff by about two feet. The new pics start here: . . . . . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#43 . . . . . . . Tomorrow afternoon we’re going to our GR club’s meeting, so I probably won’t get anything done on the layout. Monday we’re supposed to be hit by a major storm, or series of storms, lasting all week, with heavy, possibly record-setting rain. We haven’t had such a big storm in years, long before I built the layout, so it’ll be interesting to see how it handles that much rain. . . . . . . . . . . I wish I could have completed the rebuild first… I don’t like having that exposed cut in the top of the hill. This evening I loaded some blocks and stones into the cut – hopefully this will prevent loose soil being washed down onto the layout, or potentially damaging the unfinished section of the cliff. . . . . .
They say we are supposed mto get 8 or more inches of rain this week. For us that is about 2~3 months worth of water. I’ve even lowered the water level in the Koi pond to prevent overflow. Ray, here’s hoping the rain causes no damage to your project.
Right now my biggest concern is that it’ll drive me nuts not being able to work on it all week! 
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Our three feet of Sierra Cement finally melted enough to shovel the railroad clear for two days of running. Our forecast shows rain today through Tuesday turning to snow everyday through Sunday, the end of the forecast. They’re saying this is the first of a series of El Nino storms and predicting 10’ of snow in the Northern Sierra; I hope that’s for the ski areas, not us.
Wishing you best of luck Ray; Sincerely Rob
The weather guys are predicting 3-5 feet of snow on my layout in Pinetop, AZ. At least I won’t have to go up and water the trees for awhile. We can sure use the water!
Rex
Here in San Diego, they’ve downgraded the forecast quite a bit. Instead of heavy rain Mon-Fri, now it’s “periods of rain” on Monday, afternoon showers on Tuesday, showers Weds, and rain on Thur/Fri. I think the weather people here get so excited at the chance to report on real weather for a change, that they tend to blow things out of proportion in the early forecasts. Anyway, it looks like I’ll at least get to do some work on the layout this week.
Time for another update… . . . . . . . . On Monday we only had a few brief, light sprinkles in the morning, so I got some work done on the cliffs. I cemented some stones in place along the top of the cliff, that I had positioned the night before, and added a few more. I also started what will eventually be a small mine tunnel which leads out onto a shelf on the cliff. And I started modifying an area at the base of the cliff, next to a RR tunnel portal. I’m trying to reshape that part of the cliff, as well as adding a little more detail. . . . . . . . . . . I finished around noon on Monday, and by 1:30 the major rains hit. We got 1.4" of rain at our house on Monday, plus high winds. The rain had no effect on the RR! Both the exposed cut, and the fresh mortar, were undamaged. . . . . . . . . Today (Tuesday) I got a late start. There was no rain at first but it started coming down pretty hard by noon and I had to quit. But I did make some progress. I shaped up the “trench” that will become a mine tunnel, and added some texturing to the interior. I also added more stone to the area I’m modifying near the base of the cliff. I set the last few stones in mortar while getting drenched by the rain! Fortunately the mortar sets quickly, and very little of it is exposed anyway – most is hidden behind the rocks. We got 0.75" of rain by the end of the day. . . . . . . . . . . The new pics start here: . . . . . . http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Cliffs_2010.html#54 . . . . . . . . . . . . . So far it looks like tomorrow’s storm will hold off long enough for me to get a little more work done in the morning. . . . . . .
Ray: I’m very interested in your “aluminum foil” texture process. Q: Do you mix in different colors into the mortar or do you apply the color after removing the foil? I’ve been trying to think of a way to apply texture to the inside of my tunnel under the falls. I’m thinking that I just might “steal” your method. I’ve put some mortar inside by the “finger-full” method but form and color don’t look so swift.