As part of the FineScale model railroader expo 2013 layout tour , i found myself at Dick Elwell’s Hoosac Valley model railroad in Adams Massachusetts in the US. The layout has been featured in numerous publications over the years….

Hoosac Valley blog collage

A few videos have been made by Allen Keller and Scott Mason and now you can find a short one made by me below……

For a photo galley of the layout , pls click here …..

The 34ft x 64ft Hoosac Valley is a  freelance prototype layout set in western Massachusetts in the Berkshire Mountains. It runs from Pittsfiled Mass. to Essex Junction NY , passing through the area where Dick lives. The layout has been moved into it’s current location from a previous home and large parts have been salvaged from it’s previous version. The layout is designed to interchange with the Boston & Albany, the Delaware & Hudson, the New Haven and the New York Central.

Hoosac Valley blog layout overview

It’s walk around design and wide aisles make the layout a joy to operate as well as view….

Hoosac Valley blog wide open aisles

Numerous craftsman structure kits from South River Modelworks and Fine Scale Miniatures are seen on the layout……..

Hoosac Valley blog FSM kit Hoosac Valley blog SMRW kit

along with magnificent New England scenery with lots of rivers, bridges and forested mountains…..

Hoosac Valley blog new england scenery 2 Hoosac Valley blog new england scenery

Dick’s skill at detailing is reflected in the many mini scenes which can be viewed at many locations on the layout.

Hoosac Valley blog mini scene 2 Hoosac Valley blog mini scene 1

Coupled with the fact that the layout has been designed with operations in mind …..makes it one of the top model railroads ever built …..

6 Responses

  1. Excellent site with fantastic modelling by many as well as yourself. The explanation of your layout along with your lighting and sounds makes the layout come alive. Your lighting system is magnificent so much so that I will try to replicate it somehow on my double deck layout.

  2. Excellent pictures again of a fantastic layout! I loved that video you made. Vikas, if space on a flatbed permits, try keeping that videocam in a slightly angular position so that it gives the effect of looking out and ahead from the train as one normally views the scenery passing bye. I imagine that would give a little more perspective, and some time for the viewer to let the scenery sink in. With an absolutely perpendicular camera placement, objects come and go out of view very abruptly. Now I may be wrong and the experiment may not give good results, but do give it a shot!

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