Modeling the AT&SF - D&RGW Joint Line through Colorado Springs from Milepost 70 to Milepost 80 circa 1978-1979
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Post 21: A quick New Year Progress Update
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The Holidays are long over, the big Winter storm of '26 has passed, and the thermometer is still deep in minus territory—perfect conditions for working on the layout.
I said last post that there was still a bit of benchwork to build. Well, it now extends all the way around the layout room, although for sure there's still a lot more work yet to do. There are a couple short gaps in the mainline roadbed to plug, and more base boards and risers to install, but I am rapidly approaching the "golden screw" moment, if not the "golden spike" celebration.
Here are a few quick pics of the most recent progress.
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The Santa Fe's Costilla Street subway has been cut in. The parallel mainline will cross the gap in the foreground on the Rio Grande's handsome concrete Art Deco Nevada Avenue bridge.
Here's
the mainline roadbed being installed, heading down grade from Springs
Yard and curving across Shooks Run/Spring Creek to head into Kelker.
Obviously the base boards and risers still need to be built to support
it, but I can also see that the Santa Fe yard in the corner behind it
will need to be raised a bit to differentiate it a bit more.
Here's the view down along Kelker, with the mainline curving across the short wall to tie in with the swing bridge across the entrance to the layout room. The parallel roadbed for the US Army branch to Fort Carson still needs to be added. It will tie into the main at the gap just off the gate. 
Atop the gate will be a shortened model the Santa Fe bridge across Sand Creek, shown mocked up here. It will carry all traffic in and out of south end staging (Pueblo & Ft Carson).
(photo by amtrakswchief 4)
Santa Fe's Sand Creek bridge is a simple ballasted deck box girder span set on concrete piers. I calculated the spans to be nominally 50 feet long, with the rail 23 feet above the creek bed. The bridge continues out of sight to the left; the model will include only the central five spans seen here.
So that brings us up to date on the state of the layout. I'll post more when there is something new and interesting to see.
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