Spring maintenance work

With the recent good weather I was able to make some progress on railroad maintenance. As I mentioned in the my last post there was relatively little damage over the winter so it was an easy task to get everything fixed up. I did some minor trestle work a couple of weeks ago and this week I returned to track alignment and ballasting.

This cribbing had dropped and shifted slightly out of place as the fill settled over the winter. I nudged it back where I needed it and then top filled with more ballast to hold the tracks in place.

This short retaining wall had started sliding down the hill so I anchored it using a few wood stakes.

I then back filled with ballast so the tracks are now secure.

Here is a reverse view of the same area.

I'm working on finalizing the alignment of the lines and setting them in place. I think I'm happy with this area and now I just need to join the track securely and add ballast. On the right is the main line. The middle track is the connector between the main line and the upper loop. And the track on the left will allow me to reverse the direction of trains on the main line.

I've finished roofing all three cabins for the railroad maintenance workers as well as the company store where workers can find overpriced organic produce and oversized novelty coffee mugs.

No new flowers in my garden yet so here is a picture from a recent hike of yellow bells (Fritillaria pudica). Locally the native wildflowers are going crazy right now and every time I go out I see something new in bloom.