The Black River Valley Railroad now sports a second Santa Fe FP-45 locomotive. I was so pleased with the sound decoder installation in #5941 that I decided to add a second SFP-45 loco to the roster. A search for another SF Athearn BB locomotive proved fruitless so I determined to make do with what I could find. The process is briefly described on the What's New page. I also added an eight-car Santa Fe passenger consist over the last few months and a new NYC Heavyweight baggage car. A photo of the new SF passenger consist, together with their motive power is on the Railroading page. The NYC Baggage Car is on the What's New page.

The work continues on improving the scenery on the layout. I added about 3-dozen new trees to the layout after 'dressing them up' a little to fill in some of the empty spots on the layout. Photos of some of the trees, my home-built chain-link fences and changes to the back-lot of my engine facility are on the What's New page. The videos "Multi-Unit Coal Train" and "Around The Black River Valley Model Railroad" are on YouTube. There is a link on the Railroading page to both videos. Just 'click' on the thumbnail of the three GPs for the Coal Train or the BRVRR Logo thumbnail for Around The Black River Valley. As always there are a few new images posted on that page. The improved backdrop area and the General Industries scene are on the What's New page. The 'Crane Repair Scene', an addition to the back-lot of the engine terminal, are also posted there. I have added some updated photos of the layout to the Layout page which feature overall views of the new backdrops, industrial scenes and chain-link fences.

The details of the caboose light installations where I installed interior lights in a couple of Athearn BB Bay Window Cabooses are still on the What's New page. My "One Minute Freight" video of a NYC freight train passing through the crossing near the Farmer's Union Grain Elevator on the BRVRR is still posted on YouTube. A link to the video can be found on the Railroading page. Just 'click' on the thumbnail of the NYC Box Car. The photo essay of our summer of 2009 visit Horseshoe Curve and the Altoona Railroad Museum and Steamtown is on the Railroading page. 'Click' on the Big Boy thumbnail. A link to my video of a Norfolk-Southern freight negotiating Horseshoe Curve is also there. Just 'click' on the thumbnail of the NS locos.

My 'photo essay' on the construction of a pasture scene I used to fill in an empty corner of the Black River Valley Railroad layout is on the How'd You Do That page. The essay covers building a couple of small hills with foam bead board, filling in the cracks and rounding things off with Sculptamold. The application of ground cover and the staining of a rock faced cut are also documented. Click on the thumbnail of the Holstein cows on the to view the essay. The Photo Essay of our June 2008 trip to see the Great Train Story Layout at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago is still on the Railroading Page.

My 'photo essays' on the conversion of standard Atlas twin-coil surface mount switch machines to under table machines, the installation of cross bucks and an infra-red control module from Berkshire Junction, my project modifying inexpensive plastic cars for use on the BRVRR, are all on the How'd You Do That Page. Just click on your choice of the thumbnail of the Switch Machine, model cars, or the RR Crossing to view the essays.

The 'photo essay' on the Tuscola & Saginaw Bay Railroad's excursion train to Petoskey, Michigan in August 2006 and out summer of 2005 visit to the Strasburg Railroad and to the Railroad Museum Of Pennsylvania are on the Railroading Page. Click on the thumbnail of the T&SBRR GP35s, my grandson or the N&W #475 steam locomotive, respectively.

You can navigate around the site using the buttons at left on the main pages and the arrows at the bottom of every page. The BRVRR Logos located at the top and bottom of every page work as my Home Page buttons and will return you to the Home Page from anywhere on the site. All of the photographs, with the exception of my picture on the Home Page, the images in the 'photo essays' and the background image, are presented as thumbnails. If you want to view a larger image, simply 'click' on the desired photo. If you have any comments or suggestions, send me and E-mail via the button located at the bottom center of each page.

A word about cameras and images for those of you interested in photography. All of the photo images on the site until March of 2006 were taken with a HP Photosmart 435, 3.1 Mega-pixel camera. In order to present better images with more detail, I took the plunge in March 2006 and purchased a HP Photosmart 415, 5.2 Mega-pixel camera. In May of 2009 I added a Kodak C813, 8.2 Mega-pixel camera to the mix. All of the images were/are sized for quick dial-up downloading with Adobe Photoshop, Gimp or Photo Filtre. In June of 2009 I received a new Sony DCR-SX41 Video Camera as a Father's Day gift. The videos posted on You Tube, with the exception of "One Minute Freight" were taken with this camera and edited with Sony's PMB or Windows Movie Maker.

Thanks for visiting the Black River Valley Model Railroad Web Site. Come back again!

Allan