Swiss Rails in Alabama
Welcome to My favorite hobby, Swiss trains.
Most of the lands of he Canton were once part of the Roman Province called Raetia, 15 BC.
The Grey League (Grau Bund) was est to fight the Bishop of Chur in 1395. In 1496 the people joined the Swiss Confederation. 1803 saw the est. of the Canton
I first want to describe why I chose to model Swiss trains as opposed to US trains. A few of my relatives worked for the Southern Railway and the L&N which later became the CSX Family Lines. They were Engineers, Construction Managers and Car Inspectors. One summer I had the pleasure of working at the Norris Yard Steam Shop on the 4501 Locomotive overhaul. I was not particularly skilled at much of anything at the age of 18. Basically I did the dirty work no one else would do and which I did to the best of my ability not wanting to disappoint anyone. All of that to say I should have chosen US Railways. But the Swiss’s ability to overcome huge obstacles in their construction of Railways through and over the mountains was just too fascinating.
I had my first introduction to European models via “Z” scale trains and chose Swiss motive power over German. I was hooked by the colorful locomotives and the variety of rolling stock. Thus I began to gather books and literature on Swiss railways. What a wonderful history of engineering. The companies had to construct beautiful stone viaducts and 100’s of tunnels. Modeling this terrain can certainly make for a perfect situation to try and represent in HO scale.
Enjoy your visit and come again for updates to the layout.
Chris Shelton
“I thought of that while riding my bike”
Albert Einstein on the Theory of Relativity.
This past summer we spent three weeks in Switzerland which allowed me to gather first hand information and photographs. I quickly became attached to the Albula Valley which is the section of the RHB (Rhaetian Railways) that extends from Bergun to Preda, CH. We hiked down the valley from Preda to Bergun all the while watching train after train making their way up and down the valley. Many of the tunnels as you can see in the map above loop over themselves in order to ascend up the valley. The trains shift from one side of the valley to other to traverse the route. Study the map above to see what I mean.
The photo on the left is looking north from Preda towards Bergun. The photo on the right is of the first Viaduct from Preda to Bergun.
Link to Photo Albums.
My other interests include running and cycling. We also like to travel and experience other areas of the World
