Layout progress

The basement is undergoing transformation, albeit slowly.  Sheetrock is nasty slow work when you are basically alone. No thing that looks like a functioning layout is yet in place though I can see it in my minds eye. I have included some photo's and a small sketch of the proposed track plan for the area shown.  The master drawing that I started with has already undergone it's own transformation and you will have to wait for a really good clean up to understand what's going on.

Basically I have changed from the desert scenery to mountainous forested Oregon but still retaining the original concept of a non railroad corporate entity owning the operation.  This time instead of salt the commodity is black sand, a material full of heavy metals and common in this area.  It follows that former logging lines might be the venue to haul this stuff to the ocean to exploit overseas markets. It will be much easier for me to reference scenery work out my back door than to try to remember what Tucson looked like. And there are local American Indian tribes here who are involved in the community economy in a major way.  It lays the foundation for a similar scenario to the original Tucson and Baja Northern story.
The time frame is now, always moving forward.  However, I would like to use a minimum of structures and vehicles so that I can change era's by simply taking the diesels and rolling stock off the layout and running my Shay's and Ten wheelers.  Maybe a K-27 with a whaleback tender.  I'm an old Espee guy, remember, and if I can find a way to tick off the purist's out there.....I will. LOL.  You got to have fun with this stuff.