Help required.....YouTube video

M

MikeH

Registered
Hi, can anyone recommend a YouTube video of a garden railway that shows the planting/landscaping as the primary element and the railway coming secondary? Reason? I have a garden at the front of my house that is level enough for a garden railway, but at the moment most of the area is taken up with a sizable fishpond. After 20 odd years, the cleaning, watching out for cats, herons and children throwing stones into it, I want to remove it. It's made of simulated dry stone walling, which I'd like to re-use in embankments and other features. My wife doesn't want a train set in the front garden, but if I could show her a video or two where the scenery takes precedence, I might be in with a chance. I have a grandson of 3 weeks and would like to have something for him to see and play with, with me, in about 2 to 3 years time. My only chance is to have the railway blending in so well you don't really notice it until somethings running. I know, it's a big ask, but you must all be feeling my possible pending disappointment...........Help!
Mike
 
Click on this....

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r192/Gavin_Sowry/001_zpsa550569f.mp4 < Link To
th_001_zpsa550569f.jpg


Put it on replay/loop..... she'll be sold on the idea.
That shadow is from the side of my house. 14 years ago, this was grassy wasteland (sometimes called a lawn).

Edit - Sorry folks, video no longer plays with the new format.
 
Good Morning.

Try the "gorgeous garden railways" book and take her through the different approaches?

With a young grandson, you need the pond either gone or fenced in the next year anyway.

Good friends of ours lost their son to the grandparents pond, and it was one of the worst times in my life, let alone there's. It takes a minutes inattention.

And a railway will be the opposite to a hazard- a safe and fun way for you to interact with your grandson.

I hope you don't mind me getting serious on here, but it is worth while in the long run- and the danger of water/ponds to small kids is not always obvious. it is the highest form of mortality for tots.

Kind regards,

Ian
 
CoggesRailway said:
Good Morning.

Try the "gorgeous garden railways" book and take her through the different approaches?

With a young grandson, you need the pond either gone or fenced in the next year anyway.

Good friends of ours lost their son to the grandparents pond, and it was one of the worst times in my life, let alone there's. It takes a minutes inattention.

And a railway will be the opposite to a hazard- a safe and fun way for you to interact with your grandson.

I hope you don't mind me getting serious on here, but it is worth while in the long run- and the danger of water/ponds to small kids is not always obvious. it is the highest form of mortality for tots.

Kind regards,

Ian
Click to expand...

Indeed, remove the water hazard. I was considering a pond around the time the Grandkids came along, and decided not to install one.

It is far easier to convince the 'other half' if you start out with small and simple. After a while, she will be the one with the great expansion plans.... trust me.
 
Put a hole in it and it will soon be an eyesore.
 
Search for "Elmtree Line" on YouTube. Railway hidden for the most amongst plants.
 
I put a stout framework covered in heavy gauge welded mesh over my pond. Doesn't look pretty but it keeps the local heron out (he/she punctured a previous liner). It also keeps grandkids (and larger ones) out. It's always in place when the family come.
 
Hi, thanks for all your comments and Youtube vids. Still think I`m going to have to find a vid with a lot less visible railway. Regarding the fishpond, it`s not a sunken one, it`s raised - about 3 foot-ish. It`s got a nylon mesh stretched across it, which has taken my upper weight ok when I accidentally fell onto it whilst trying to retrieve some stones that kids had thrown onto it. As a matter of interest, here`s a photo of the area I have to play with.......
 

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Not got access to vids at the moment but attached should be a couple of pics of my line. One of the requirements was it must not impact on the garden too much! I'm as much into my garden as the trains! Plus t'other half did not want the railway obvious in the garden either, no twee buildings etc was the request ;D

IMG_2618_1_zps6bac3f81.jpg


GR5_zps469ae7c6.jpg


GR6_zps7bf07cbf.jpg



I'll try to find some suitable video if I can!

Steph'
 
MikeH said:
retrieve some stones that kids had thrown onto it.
Click to expand...
I'm concerned that if you have kids throwing stones into the pond, what might they do to a railway?
This is the downside to front gardens.
 
Thanks StephH, that's the sort of photos I'm looking for. Just have to ensure my wife gets a tad drunk over Xmas and get her to sign a pre-prepared statement agreeing to this and I'll be very happy.
The kids who were throwing stones, well gravel actually, which can just get thru the mesh, have grown up now so don't have that trouble anymore. Got quite a bit of land behind my house but it's all on a slope so useless for a railway. Ok for an end to end layout but a circuit is better if you just want to watch the trains go by......hence the front garden.....
Mike
 
MikeH said:
A circuit is better if you just want to watch the trains go by......hence the front garden.....
Mike
Click to expand...

::) Think about it..... Front garden, visible to passers by. Over the years, there have been many warnings posted about the perils of this approach. Not trying to put you off, but nasty things have happened.
 
I like Steph's take on using bricks/pavers 'the other way round' to retain ballast and track.. Makes a path as well, good idea there!

I would echo the sentiment about front garden railways.. Unless you have a large detached house. An eight foot wall. Automated gates. AND, probably large, detached dogs roaming free! - Sad, but these are the times we live in.
 
Bit worried about you planning to use your front garden and agree with what some other members have said about this - you could easily lose your track overnight. Some years ago I heard of a guy who had a similar setup and had his Sumpter Valley Mallet taken when he popped into the house for a couple of minutes. As you have a large rear garden, with some planning you could still just watch the trains go round even if they have to do a bit of climbing and descending.
 
Thanks for advice about front garden railways. However, without telling you where I live, it's actually a cul-de-sac on a mountainside and everyone in the street keeps a look out for each other. The one and only minor offense in the street was in 1982 that turned out to be a new young lad employed by our milkman. I have inadvertently over the years, overnight, left my front door unlocked, side door unlocked, car unlocked, car unlocked with keys left in, car and door keys left on fishpond wall, garage door open (and I've got some stuff in there...), timber fencing panels in front of garage door for 4 days, leave my gardening implements on the front garden for weeks on end in the summer, left front room window open.....I could go on........ I am so lucky to be living where I am. People who have moved from the street usually come back within a couple of years after suffering burglaries, car theft, etc. I've had no fish stolen in the 26 years I've had the pond and the pump and filter unit is still on public display. The only trouble I've had is a handful of young kids, about 9/10 years of age throwing gravel in the fishpond - which has now stopped. So I'm not really perturbed about a front garden railway. I would never leave any locos or stock out overnight anyway.
 
Hi
like all the other forum members think again about putting your railway in your front garden ,you are advertising the fact that you have or will have expensive engines and rolling stock .
If you go to the gallery on the forum you will find a lot of ideas and pictures, show these to your good lady when she has a few .
I would not like to see your railway in the stolen column on this forum in a few months time .
Graham Shrewsbury
 
MikeH said:
Thanks StephH, that's the sort of photos I'm looking for. Just have to ensure my wife gets a tad drunk over Xmas and get her to sign a pre-prepared statement agreeing to this and I'll be very happy.
The kids who were throwing stones, well gravel actually, which can just get thru the mesh, have grown up now so don't have that trouble anymore. Got quite a bit of land behind my house but it's all on a slope so useless for a railway. Ok for an end to end layout but a circuit is better if you just want to watch the trains go by......hence the front garden.....
Mike
Click to expand...

Do not discount a sloping Garden for the Garden Railway. Without a picture of the rear site it is difficult to say what you could do. But there have been people that have built Railways that are Ground Level by the House and supported on 6ft Fence Posts further down the Garden. Or of course vic-verca. I once looked at a Garden in Hemel Hempstead on just such a site and within 5 minutes I had worked up a Darjeeling Himalayan Scheme for the plot (in my mind). So back Garden may be a possibility. Why not post a couple of pics on the site, enough experts here to tell you what may be possible. Trust me in the long run it will be much less hassle than the front Garden.

Whilst I was typing this posting I thought about a Model Tram Layout on just such a site that may give you ideas for your back Garden. The posts could be hidden by Planting etc, see this Vid :-

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3xhBjYcL0rw

JonD
 
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