Track power

I haven't spent much time running trains in the past month in part due to the weather and in part due to track power issues. While the weather is out of my control, the electrical issues with the track were entirely within my control and I only have myself to blame.

BN 5406 out for run to make sure the track is fully powered again.

A year ago I had assumed that I would be converting my two (at the time) locomotives to radio-controlled battery power, so electrifying the track to provide power was just temporary. With this in mind I didn't give much consideration to providing power along the track and ignored all the advice of many fine garden railroaders who know better than I do. A year later I now have six locomotives, none of which have been converted to battery power yet, so I'm still relying on track power. Which is becoming more unreliable over time as the electrical connections between track segments sometime break due to natural outdoor conditions.

A mostly BN consist. I had a couple more cars on the end including a caboose but it seemed to be too much for this locomotive. Yet another power issue I need to investigate, but this time the problem is with the locomotive, not the track.

In retrospect, I should have assumed I'd always have something that might need track power, and I should have made providing power a greater priority. The solution that many recommend, and I now wish I had done, is to run a power cable underneath the entire length of track, making a connection between the cable and track about every 12–15 feet. With 135 feet of track I should have 9 or 10 power drops. But I only put in two. And today I buried a new cable and added a third power drop so I could at least get trains running again. This likely won't be the last time I have to do this.

Once the power issue was resolved (for now) I had a BN consist up and running to test it out. The neighbors saw the trains running and came over for a few minutes to check them out.

We're moving into late spring and there is something blooming in every corner of the garden. Below are a few pictures to share of some of my favorite standouts this week.

Columbine are scattered across the backyard and are in peak bloom. I've propagated these from seed from a single plant and I'm amazed at the diversity of the blooms that have resulted.

I have two evergreen huckleberry (Vaccinium ovatum), one of which is about eight feet tall and is a huge draw for bumblebees and Anna's hummingbirds right now. I even saw an Orange-crowned Warbler feeding on it the other day.

I have three varieties of Pacific Coast Iris (Iris tenax) and this one is in full bloom this week. Beautiful. 

Salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis) has a very simple flower but the deep magenta color makes it really pop out in a Northwest sea of green. My salmonberry has never looked more robust than it does this year—perhaps due to all the rain.

A big purple allium is like a fireworks explosion. 

The bearded iris are just getting started. This peach and cream variety is usually the first one to open.