Bridging the Gaps

Trains can't climb mountains like cars do, so they need bridges and trestles. Here is how I crossed the chasms of my layout.

The bird's eye view gives a great feel for the layout and where the gaps exist. A curved trestle has already been placed in the upper right corner. The bottom center will be bridged with a truss bridge.

Placing the trestle realistically required some fancy shaping for the footings that will look like concrete in the end. Here, they are just Styrofoam to be covered an painted later.

Most major components for my truss bridge are complete here. The tracks have been attached the the deck and the trusses assembled. Next, I will add guard rails between the regular rails and build the sway braces that will cross between trusses above the trains.


Bridge abutments were finished prior to installation of the bridge. I simply shaped plaster to look like concrete abutments. Paint will be added later.

My assembled bridge! The final step before installation will be to paint it and remove the masking tape from the rails.

With the canyon taking form, the bridges look more like they belong on the layout.