Getting started!

Hello and welcome!   At the encouragement of fellow modeller and excellent blogger, John R. of The New York Central Train Layout fame,  I am undertaking my own blog to follow the progress of my HO scale layout, the Kings Port Division.    The layout is located in part of my basement.  I've been working on it gradually over the last 22 years.   Once rights were obtained, bench work construction began about a year after we moved into our home.    The layout has its own room thanks to a wall I installed with a 36 inch pocket door.  This helps give the layout room a sense of being a world of its own, but it also separates the area (which can sometimes be messy during project time!) from the family room area.  Most importantly the wall prevents my two felines (Lucy and Sophie) from acting like "Catzillas" and terrorizing the 1/87 population and wreaking havoc!  

Here is the entrance to the layout area with a vintage 20th Century Limited magazine ad framed on the wall...

                 ...and the "To the Trains" sign I received as a Christmas present from my wife.

    Once the door is open the layout looks like this.  Its "U" shaped with return loops on either side.

         As the blog progresses I'll describe its features and operation in more detail but I wanted to  provide a brief overview.

                The right side of the layout with the city of Kings Port, NY a fictional location....

                       The left side with the equally fictional West Mill, NY.

                                             Another view of the Kings Port area.

I'll include this link to a video tour I uploaded to Youtube a while ago.   I've made some changes on the layout since it was posted but it gives a pretty good overview.  Thanks for watching!

https://youtu.be/cFjFjNwSJNc