From a Different Perspective....

AMFet write: As I mentioned in one of my comments after a DB post, I really am keeping a close eye on how his "above the doors" layout turns out, mainly because I think it is the answer to my space problems as well. Somehow we have managed to shoe horn a family of 5 into a 3 bedroom house the size of DB's train room, and that somehow includes enough toys to sink a WW1 Dreadnought.

My own thinking when discussing the genre is that the height and width of the baseboard would best be served by choosing an area where the line threads its way along a shelf or embankment, and I believe Darryl has that in mind for his Coal Route scenes.

For my a-planning South Taranaki layout, a good spot to try out this theory with is the line between Maxwell and Kai Iwi. In this spot it follows a small valley down to a bridge before climbing back out....quite a common occurance on this stretch of line to be honest which is reflected in the gradient chart.



From Google Earth, you can see the line curving down hill from the top left before crossing the small bridge (No 32) at the bottom of the hill (by the trees bottom right):



And finally, a look back from the cab of 7348 on 547 showing the height from the creek as well as the trees that would form a suitable backdrop:



I think this will work well, as the extra height afforded to the track makes it easier to see over the edge of the baseboard when standing on the floor looking up.

In the meantime, I can picture in my minds eye milk trains winding their way down the hallway, or even looping about the laundry....scale earthquakes (from the washing machine) an added bonus, perhaps?