| Layout | Great Northwestern Railway | Owner | Detlef Kurpanek |
| Scale | HO | Era | late '70s/early '80s |
| Train Control | MRC DCC | Road(s) | GNW, SP, ATSF, RI |
| Modeled Location | Freelance (Deserts of New Mexico) | Car Routing | Car Cards |
| Dispatching | Written Track Warrants | ADA | No |
| Web Site | GNW web site | Bring | |
| Address | Aurora | Crew | 6 |
| % Track Done | 100 (with a few tweaks) | % Scenery Done | 70 |
| Layout Size | 750 sq ft in 30' by 25' area | Distance from Hotel | 30 mi direct (no tolls); 40 mi with tolls, but 10 minutes faster |
Description
The GNW was conceived shortly after the Union Pacific built and purchased lines connecting Oregon and the northwest sometime after the first transcontinental railroad was completed. The vision was to connect the ports and timber resources in the northwest with the growing state of Texas, including their ports, with a line connecting the SP in Tucumcari New Mexico with the UP, SP and Rio Grande near at Green River Utah. While this concept was valid, it did not result in the bridge line as intended – connecting traffic was sparse at best. However numerous mineral and oil reserves were discovered along the line, creating enough traffic to keep the line viable. Additionally, the GNW bought up the old narrow gauge right of way from the Colorado & Southern (itself later merged into the Burlington Route and the AT&SF), including the old R.O.W of the Denver, South Park and Pacific, with the connection into Denver as well. This added in a number of coal and mineral interests along the line. To effectively use this line, the GNW rebuilt the track to standard gauge. The railroad operates with bridge traffic, primarily from the SP, along with a considerable amount of local traffic. In the early 70’s, Amtrak found this line provides a useful connection between its operations in the northwest and south central US, and consequently added trains 31 and 42: the San Juan, borrowing the term from the D&RGW varnish that once ran along this part of the country.
The model RR is set somewhere between Colorado and New Mexico along the main. About 100’ of main track connect hidden track to a 35’ long, 9-track staging yard, providing 27 slots for train storage. These feed the layout with the traffic to keep the rest of the operations running. The major classification yard, Armstrong (named with a head nod to the Dean of Track Planning), is placed along this main and is where cars are exchanged for on layout operation. The branch line is approximately 100’ long, and comes off the main to wind around the room, dropping into Warm Springs, a fairly industrialized town, and includes the operating areas of Sand Creek and Mesa City. Furthermore, there is another branch off the line to the mining operation of Cristo Rey, where the precious mineral Unobtainium is mined. It also is the destination of Black Water Falls (conveniently located under the kid’s bathroom toilet), which includes a daily tourist train operated by the Colorado and Southern Scenic Railroad. The operating scheme is the exchange of cars between industry and mainline trains by means of locals and manifest freights. Other on-line industries includes the Sinclair Baker Refinery, Halcon Cement and the sleepy town of Abajo Caliente which hosts a hydrocal factory. If that is not enough, there is a (very) short mining railroad line, the Ojitas RR, connecting the phosphate producing Ojitas Mine to the GNW. As for passenger operations, there is regular commute service between Armstrong and Warm Springs, as well as the aforementioned daily Amtrak train, the San Juan.
The era is late 70's/early 80's with a mix of first and second generation diesels. Due to limited cashflow, the GNW necessarily uses second hand power for most of its trains. SP provides the power for most of the through trains.
Size: The layout is situated in an area approximately 750 sq ft, configured and an around-the-walls double deck layout with two peninsulas. With 30" (ok, one 28") min radius curves, there are a couple pinch points with less than 2' aisle width, but in general the room provides a comfortable operating area. The layout and the basement is not ADA accessible. Layout height ranges from approximately 50" on the main deck to 65-70" on the upper deck. Step stools are provided to ease access to the upper deck operating areas.
Number of Crew: It takes 6 operators and a dispatcher to carry out the work on the layout. The positions available are:
- Warm Springs Yardmaster
- Armstrong Yardmaster
- Road Engineers (4) – Operate the locals, through freights, passenger and commute pool
Scenery: Scenery is set in the NM desert and it is about 80% done.
Train Controls: Train controls are DCC by MRC PA Wireless and PA tethered throttles at the yards. LCC is in use for track detection and turnout control; even a couple signals. All locos are sound equipped. The locos are also all equipped with a LOT of momentum and braking feature is enabled. This adds train handling to railroad operations. Trains will not instantly stop when throttle is closed!
The layout is throttle constrained. So would appreciate it if some operators be willing to use their cell phone and app. I have 4 wireless MRC throttles, and we are looking at running with 5-6 people. Please consider operating off your phone for the session. The MRC PA can handle up to 8 cell connections on the wifi connection. When using the WiFi, be sure download the app before arriving. There are several, but the most popular are:
- WiThrottle – for Apple products
- Engine Driver – for Android products
Train Movement Scheme: All trains except passenger and one express freight are extras and run off a train sequence. Passenger service is run per the timetable.
Car Movement Scheme: Cars are moved by car cards and waybills. The Micro-Mark card system is used. "Train Packs" are used to define trains and carry instructions.
For those who have not visited the GNW, be sure to browse through the Operators Section on the GNW website: GNW web site. The Orientation gives you a lot of the background on the GNW and what to expect if you operate there.
COVID Disclaimer: Please don't even think about coming if you are uncomfortable with getting together or if you feel punky. Folks know the situation well enough to make their own determination on group safety. Masks are at your discretion: no shame in wearing them, no problem without. There will be hand sanitizer available, and the throttles are sanitized after each op session.
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Copyright © 2025 Front Range Rails. All rights reserved. Last Updated: March 3, 2025
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