S.J.R.&P.Ry.

Stan and Debbie Ames

The SJR&P Railway provides a truly unique and marvelous operating experience, some much needed exercise and a breath of fresh air! This Fn3 narrow gauge garden railroad features a beautiful garden, waterfalls, lily ponds, 2500 ft of track and more than 25 steam locomotives powered by Digital Command Control. Trains climb 13 vertical feet at the mercy of bridges, tunnels and REAL grades molded into the hillside. The point to multi point track plan set in harmony with the graceful garden scenery attracts casual visitors and operations enthusiasts alike. Train crews work together to transform the landscape into a real working railroad. Trains ship coal, hardwoods, and oil downhill to the standard gauge interchange and also serve the various towns and industries throughout the railroad.

Contact Info Stan and Debbie Ames
Chelmsford, MA
(978)-609-8360
stanames@comcast.net

Layout at a glance Name: SJRP Railway
Scale: Fn3 (1:20.3 3ft narrow gauge)
Size: 200 ft x 160 ft, 10 scale miles of track
Prototype: American 3 ft narrow gauge
Local: rugged hills of the North East
Era: 1940-1950s
Style: linear with 4 main destinations yards, 5 branch lines, 10 major industries, and 13 additional switching locations
Mainline run: 2 scale miles (600 ft)
Minimum degree of curve: 43° (2 Meters)
Minimum Turnout: #6 for mainlines,#4 for yards/Industries
Maximum Grade: 2% mainline, 4% branch
Elevation Change: 250 scale ft (13 feet)
Roadbed: gravel roadbed
Track: 110 lb rail (code 332 stainless steel and brass)
Scenery: garden setting
Backdrop: natural sky
Control: DCC/Digital plus by Lenz

Operating positions: Yard Crews: build trains and switch industries within yards limits.
Road Crews: haul long distance freight, passenger and mixed trains between two of the destination yards with limited switching in between.
Wayfreight Crews: deliver freight to industries throughout the railroad. Wayfreight jobs have various levels of distance and difficulty.
Dispatcher: controls trains outside yard limits by communicating with crews at sidings and yards.
Road Foreman: manages all operations on the railroad

Comments: A typical operating session lasts 3-4 hours. We are subject to actual weather conditions since this is outdoors operation session. A fair degree of walking, climbing steps and bending over to uncouple rolling stock is required for most crews, but that is part of the fun. There are a variety of jobs to suit various skill levels. Most crews consist of two individuals; one engineer and one conductor/brakeman. Train crews are provided with operating instructions, route maps, clipboards, throttles, and 5x7 car cards with photographs. Yard Crews are provided with an initial list of empty cars needed by the industries on the railroad.

Some positions are Handicap accessible

Most recent update: 2008 December 21
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