Welcome to Blair Atholl towards Drumochter
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How to operate the layout . . . . . . . . .

  
  26 019 & 26 031 arrive at Blair Atholl with the 13 10 Glasgow to Inverness As can be seen from the track plan, "Blair Atholl towards Drumochter"
is in fact an end to end layout with
two fiddle yards stacked one above the other. This convenient arrangement is the result of the double track section's climb northwards from the station.

The "South" yard contains seven lines and feeds the single track to and from Pitlochry and the south whilst the "North" yard contains eight lines and feeds the double track from Dalwhinnie and the north

  
       
  Train control is by three conventional H&H hand held controllers and the layout is wired for cab control with common return. Controllers are identified as "Red", "Yellow" & "Green" with all sections on the panel having a rotary switch for cab selection, an isolator switch and LED mimic.

To simplify operation, "Red" has control of trains heading south as far as Blair Atholl Station, "Yellow" controls trains to and from the south yard on the single track and "Green" controls northbound trains from the station. When a train is not scheduled to stop at Blair Atholl, the respective controllers are set to identical speeds and the change-over takes place automatically in the station area.

  
       
  During an exhibition, two drivers are required for main line running and one fiddleyard operator for turning locomotives and marshalling trains. It is therefore desirable to have a minimum of five operators available at any given time to facilitate "crew changes" and rest periods

Since this is a privately owned layout, we always welcome extra help.

Please visit our exhibiton page for details on how you can experience operating "Blair Atholl towards Drumochter"

 A class 158 passes the southbound snow plough  
       
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Murray of Atholl Tartan