First two-train meet at Blumenthal

With trackage laid all the way to the town of Blumenthal, it was time to do some railfanning on the Ponderosa Lines. The passing siding at Blumenthal allows trains to "turn" as well as pass one another upon arrival. Here are some photos of the action, the first time two trains have been dispatched to the mid-point town of Blumenthal in the same day. A new favorite for railfans along the line, you will see plenty of images of the line's longest trestle, over Palmer Gulch. The origin point for both trains is Boulder Point (you will see why Linda renamed the town of House Rock  to represent this place). As of late June, Boulder Point station includes a reverse loop, house track, and siding. Also, for two weekends we have adorned the right-of-way and vicinities with some scattered vegetation to actually represent the "garden" aspect of the "garden railroad". Most plants are native or regional varieties, or at least drought-tolerant plants of some kind. They range from various junipers and lavinder flowers to sedges, grasses, and penstimons. Still learning about plant names, but we are getting fairly familiar with the types of plants that do well here at 7,000 feet elevation. I have to admit that, although my true interest is designing railroads and laying track, it was like going to a candy store when we paid a visit to our local "Native Plant and Seed" company here in town to start deciding on some plants. We pretty much decided to call it quits after one wagon-full load of plants made its way to the car. Numerous rocks that appeared naturally in the yard (and through right-of-way excavations) considerably added to the landscaping scenes (with Linda's enjoyment of throwing them around to make them look "natural"...) So, as of late June, our garden railroad is looking like the term suggests. Much more than I had anticipated for this summer, yet plenty to do the next couple of years on the Ponderosa Lines! The plan is to complete the entire single-track main line this summer, to the "end" of the line at Paradise (please see previous post labeled "Concept and Maps".