Algonquin Pines On30 - The guided tour

Algonquin Pines - the guided tour

You will notice that there are many areas that still need to be populated with structures, trees and details, as with most model railways its a work in progress, I will highlight the areas that the structures will eventually be put in. Please check back to see updates as I complete each area of the railroad.

The era of the railroad is in the late summer sometime in the early 1900’s to 1940’s. The main purpose for the railroad is logging, although several other industries in the area are also serviced by the railroad.

We will begin the tour starting in the west and make our way around to the east. We enter the layout room through a cut of tall pines. On the left will be the woodcutters shack. A small gondola with small scrap logs from the lumber camp is unloaded at least once per day. Once the small logs are unloaded, a group of workers labour hard cutting the logs into smaller pieces in order to keep up with the high demand for cut wood which power the locomotives and for the town folk. To stoke their stoves.

As we round the curve we will also notice that on the track by the woodcutter shack is an ash pit, water tower and soon to be be a sanding and coal station to service the locomotives going to and from the Engine repair machine shop. A road also crosses the track heading to the southern part of the town of Mowat from the northern section of the town. The engine repair machine shop is a large complex with number of heavy milling machines all belt driven. The backside of the building is open to reveal all the inner workings of the shop. This will be a scratch built complex, I hope to start construction in December of 2018, photos will follow.

On the right as we continue around the curve is the locomotive turntable capable of handling 65 foot locomotives like the large 4-6-0 or the 2-6-6-2’s. Which occasionally pass through the region.

There is also a 3 stall roundhouse with two exterior storage tracks for locomotives. Beside the roundhouse is another ash pit, a large water tower and soon to be a sand ,coaling, and cut wood station to top up fuel for the departing locomotives. Coal is kept on site for some of the visiting locomotives from neighbouring municipalities, as mentioned before the primary fuel source for the resident locomotives is cut wood.

To the left we begin to enter the small town of Mowat. Mowat was a favourite haunt for Tom Thompson a famous Canadian artist from the group of seven who spent many a summer painting landscapes in and around Algonquin Park. Tom Thompson drowned in Canoe lake not to far from the town, it is thought that his death was of a suspicious nature and many books have been written on the subject.

As we enter Mowat on the left is the local warehouse import exporters, the structures original purpose was as a creamery but I think it also serves well for this application. Here box cars with goods for the town are dropped off and then loaded with items leaving the area for towns to the east and west. Next door to it is the local general store, and beside it is Breddy woodworks. Breddy woodworks makes canoes, crates, chairs and caskets. A number of canoes are shipped to areas to the east and west. Beside Breddy Woodworks will be the park ranger office and local post office.

The local church is next and then there will be a hotel to the back and then the station depot to the front.

Passing by the station on the right will be the location for the sawmill and possibly two other industries, not sure yet what they will be. Maybe a shingle mill or a welding shop also possibly an ice house. The sawmill will be a large structure open on the side so that the details of the saw machinery can be seen from the front of the layout.

Passing by the sawmill on the right we come to the log pond. Here logs a brought by rail from the logging camps and dumped into the pond to be moved up the conveyor to the sawmill. On the right side of the log pond is a dock and three buildings used for the log rollers. These are the guys who move the logs to the conveyor. There is an office, a large equipment warehouse and a small workshop storage building. The dock also serves to restock incoming alligators who then proceed back down the lake to outlying lumber camps not serviced by the railroad, they drop of supplies and then pick up groups of floating logs to be hauled back up the lake to the mill.

Alligators are small amphibious vessels designed for the logging industry. These vessels were capable of pulling themselves across land from one lake to another. Logs were moved by the vessels to log shutes which moved the logs from one lake to the next. The alligator would then pull itself across land from one lake to the next pick up the logs and move out across the lake toward its destination of the mill.

As we move around the corner on the left we begin to pass the old mill which when built will be a brewery with hopefully a working water wheel. Box cars loaded with oak barrels of various sizes are delivered here a few times per month. Reefers are brought here to pick up the barrels and kegs of fine Ale which are then shipped by rail to the warehouse at Mowat for sorting and distribution to the lumber camps and towns east and west.

From here we continue west bound and proceed across the two lower bridges crossing the waterfalls on Oxtounge river. Once across the river we proceed around a bend and on the left you will find the main logging camp at canoe lake. Here logs are brought by horse drawn cart from outlying camps and then loaded onto the railroad log cars. The camp has a few portable camp service cars, parked on a small spur. You will also notice a large tree in the middle of the compound this is a spar tree rigged with pulleys and cables used to lift the logs of the carts and onto the rail cars. The cables are driven by a steam powered winch called a donkey. The camp will also have several structures around it, loggers cabins, a blacksmith shop and a small industry either a coke oven, turpentine manufacturer or maple syrup distillery.

We continue westbound past the lumber camp, we come across a depot station which serves as a drop off point for new crew coming to the camp and as a drop off for supplies. We then cross two more bridges across the rapids of Oxtounge river. Once across on the right will be the rangers cabin and the fire watch tower.

Continuing westbound we eventually come across the mine works on the right, passing by the mine we exit the layout room and enter the small staging and storage area in the room beside the layout room. Here I have four small storage tracks for locomotives and caboose. I also have two small staging tracks for passenger cars. This is also the location of my programming track and a small work area where I service the locomotives and rolling stock.

This completes the tour. Please check back on occasion as I will continue to update photos and descriptions as the structures get built and the layout evolves.

I hope you enjoyed the tour.

Thank You for visiting.

Cheers

Simon Elbourne

Owner and Chief Engineer of the Algonquin Pines Railroad.