(theme music) Announcer: Support for Tracks Ahead is supported in part by Kalmbach Publishing Company and its on-line video magazine, Model Railroader Video Plus.

And by Walthers.

(theme music) Spencer: Hi, I'm Spencer Christian.

On this episode of Tracks Ahead, we'll climb high into the mountains of the Hakone national park to experience spectacular views of Japan's Mount Fuji on some rather unique railways-- visit with a Wisconsin rail artist who creates memorable images in the adow of green bay's Lambeau Field-- and mosey on through a Northern Kentucky garden railroad.

But first, a look at a Saxony inspired layout and a tribute to its German roots.

Let's get started.

(Natural sound and music) Narrator: When the first warm rays of welcomed sunshine bring blooming splendor to spring in southern Germany, the outdoors-minded start their trek to the Saxon- Taura Holiday Park.

There, it's easy to experience the commerce, history and nature of the area right up close.

The park is not far from the Elba river- in the legendary romantic area of Dahlin Heathland, about 35 miles east of Liepzig.

This gorgeous region is extremely easy to reach from Dresden or Berlin.

Narrator: One of the largest and most popular attractions in the Taura Holiday Park is, of course, the garden railway.

Roughly 1800 feet of track was laid in an area that takes up approximately 20,000 square feet of park floor.

The main theme: The Harz narrow gauge railways.

(train sounds and music) Narrator: The idea to integrate an L-G-B railroad in this holiday park in southwest Germany approaching the Czech border was originated in different childhood experiences shared by a father and son.

Philipp Anders: One day my father walked in in with a starter set and we set up a small Steinz in a circle- very simple.

And we looked at it and said 'Man there's some real potential here... we can make many things out of this".

And that's pretty much how the idea came about and so began the entire thing!

And since both of us from a young age, me from my childhood as well as my father from his childhood, we both had a very close and real connection to railroading.

So, we simply began to develop this idea further and the project then grew piece by piece.

Narrator: And you can clearly how well those pieces fit.

One feels actually transported to the Harz- with realistic buildings and many intricate small railroad scenes on the periphery.

(natural sounds, trains and music) Narrator: But the Taura Holiday Park offers so much more than only a garden railway trip through the Harz.

Philipp Anders: The whole idea behind the park is that it's a destination- it has many different areas and exhibits that are designed to attract people to the park.

We keep it fresh by offering our visitors new things all the time.

Maybe that means new buildings in the park or maybe some new ideas.

For example, we now have a new minerals exhibit.

And of course all of the nature here- naturally it plays a major role!

Another draw is that it's a family draw, an outing- but the drive isn't all that far from anywhere.

Plus, we have several small vacation homes and also vacation apartments and flats.

You could spend an entire vacation here like you normally would on vacation- or just make it a day trip or spend the day and the night.

It all depends on what your plans are or what you might be celebrating.

(natural sound of park and train) Narrator: A choice best suited for rail-lovers, is to delight in the expertly designed and detailed L-G-B layout.

The small narrow gauge trains make their runs days, weeks and months on end with no problems at all, viewed by all kinds of human visitors as well as animal neighbors.

Taura is another example of how sturdily the Lehmann garden railway equipment is designed, built and maintained.

Other highlights for the entire family are the famous sites worth seeing in the Free State of Saxony in expert miniature design and construction.

And one of the absolute must sees?

The Dresden Church of Our Lady in incredible detail.

(music) Another world-famous sacred building is not to be left out, or overlooked- The cathedral at Meissen, reproduced true-to-life.

Philipp Anders: Behind me we have the Albrecht Castle along with the cathedral of Meissen.

This is built in a 1:24 scale- we decided on 1:24 to make the calculations a lot easier for us, considering that this is one of the biggest projects to date.

We also have the Muhldenstein Castle, which is near Leicing... we put that in so that we could have something that represents that area.

You know, guests should have a personal connection with the miniature park, so having buildings and recognizable features that they are familiar with sure helps.

And of course, it's a really rather a nice thing for visitors who come here because they discover the entire region without having to use too much gas!

(Music) Narrator: A narrow gauge railway is of course a must see in the Free State of Saxony in miniature.

And this one also features L-G-B in the plan among many other things- And one of those things, and perhaps the most famous, is the Saxon narrow gauge locomotive, Meyer class 4K.

The one-time largest narrow gauge station in Europe is here to experience.

Philipp Anders: We have a 4-K running in the area, for example- that is based on a prototype from the Dulnitz Railroad- the "Wild Robert".

As it was in the past, it's still an active narrow gauge railroad.

Of course, it's really quite nice that the region still has an efficient narrow gauge railroad, and we wanted to show it off here.

It's important that you have something for children- something that moves... And for Grandma some beautiful plants, of course.

And interesting buildings to discover for the entire family.

Really, a bit of everything!

(natural sound and music) Narrator: The passengers on the little Dahlnitz railroad pass another striking and famous building from Saxony's rich architectural past: The Battle of the Nations Monument in Liepzig.

This model is an outstanding reproduction that precisely mimics the monumental dimensions of the original.

The model took over 4 months to build, primarily due to the care taken to ensure that not only the building was true to form, but make certain that the surrounding landscapes and miniature detail were spot on as well.

Narrator: So it's no surprise that a part time hobby has developed into a nearly full time passion.

But there's no denying, it's still all quite fun.

Philipp Anders: Yes, it's true that it's not a hobby anymore... And it has become real work!

Daily work.

But it's still very, very enjoyable.

It's really quite clear that you have to approach all of this in a professional way to get results.

Otherwise your efforts are at no use at all!

Narrator: The Taura Holiday Park operators have been quite successful in supporting their railway and entertaining visitors for many years now.

The park as well as the region are well-worth a visit for train and nature lovers alike.

(music) Spencer: Seeing layouts from across the world cements the fact that railroad appreciation is certainly a global sentiment.

Coming up, a trip to Green Bay, not to catch a Packers game, but rather to meet an artist whose own rail history is quite evident in his work.

But first, a Northern Kentucky couple show off their stunning garden railroad.

(train sounds) Bill Brown: Each year we open our layouts up to the public.

So we really enjoy having the public come in... And see our layouts and talking to people.

(music) Narrator: Inspired by the Bluegrass nickname for Kentucky and adding their initials Bill and Pam Brown created a G scale or Garden Railroad in their own backyard.

It started after the Browns of Fort Mitchell Kentucky attended a train convention and fell in love with a variety of layouts.

Bill: We had this inner layout, a patio already in existence.

So I had to design this inner loop to go round the existing patio and waterfall.

And it wasn't easy but we got it done.

(Music) Narrator: They learned it's more common for G scalers to build a railroad first... then landscape around it.

But in this case Bill and Pam already had a beautiful garden and wanted to enrich it.

So he laid the rails.

And she worked the soil.

Pam Brown: There's trimming involved - Many of the plants will get big but to keep them in scale you have to, you know tend to them.

We have Clematis on the fences and gates, then we have the dwarf plants that kind of fit in with the G scale train and the buildings.

Bill: The inside loop is a hundred feet and the outside loop is a hundred and fifty feet.

The track is brass, so it has to be cleaned every once in a while so that the trains have contact, good contact with the rails.

Don't leave the trains out, always take them in at night when I'm running.

Behind me is a forestry station with a tower and then farther back is a lumber company with a setup, and in back trains are lumber they haul lumber and wood.

The inner circle has two little village areas that we set up and there's some fire truck, there's a fire house with a fire truck in it.

My occupation is selling fire equipment so I kinda lean towards it.

I've a couple firehouses in the layout.

Narrator: It took months to get it right, and years of ongoing maintenance to keep it all running smoothly.

Bill: I started out with LGB which was German and the company is still in existence and they're, they're quality trains and I have two or three of them, and then I have a USA trains and Aristocrat trains that I have purchased.

I have a remote case that's waterproof so I can keep it out.

And I am using dcc power at and I have a remote that I can control each train, so its track powered.

That makes it nice and I can make the bell ring or the whistle blow and that really makes it interesting.

Pam: Our railroad does not run all year round, ah, mostly in just in the summer.

My husband will take the buildings in the fall, late fall and he'll bring them out again in the spring...but the track stays.

I mean we could run the train but we've never attempted to do that.

It's a lot of work but I think we really enjoy when people come to visit.

You meet so many interesting people (music) Narrator: Green Bay, Wisconsin may best be known for its NFL Packers, but it's also home to significant train history and the rail art of Steve Krueger.

While Steve spent much of life moving around the country, he event found a home in this Northern Wisconsin city.

(street sounds) Steve Krueger: During the summer the Frisco railroad, that's the St. Louis/San Francisco railway, they needed summer help- they needed switchmen and they needed brakemen.

I worked for the railway from 1965 June, to the end of September as a switchman/brakeman.

And aftethat got drafted into the army.

Narrator: After a stint in the military, Steve found his old job at Frisco-Western still waiting for him.

Steve: And then I got out of the army, was rehired on with the same railroad, the Frisco, and from there my second career began with the Frisco.

Narrator: It was during this time that Steve began applying his love for trains with his love for art.

Steve: With my railroad experience, I did a few train paintings for some friends and I liked it.

It was very pleasant because sometime I'd be in the middle of painting and it would bring back memories of when I was in transportation services as a switchman/brakeman.

Smelling the creosote ties and the diesel fumes, it became comfortable since I had that experience, and plus I don't know how many artists out there who paint train scenes have been in transportation services who have worked on a train as a switchman/brakeman.

Narrator: Steve's understanding of train mechanics prepared him well.

Steve: When you're painting technical trains and then you're doing a wash of trees and you're bringing the stuff together, you have to use lots of different techniques.

If you want to put masking fluid to mask something out, and then do a wash over that and pull the masking fluid off, I developed a technique of just using a straw and I cut it to a point and I dip it in masking fluid.

I can do real fine lines if I want to do telephone wires, I can do certain things that are unique du to the technique I've picked up.

Narrator: One of the things Steve likes best about his work at the museum is his interaction with children.

Steve: I love to see kids pretend to use their imagination rather than being fed something.

Narrator: It's that appreciation and love for kids that prompted Steve to create a train themed whimsical painting for his own granddaughter.

Steve; I wanted to make something bright, colorful and whimsical, I just thought "hey how about making a train fly through the sky, put the railroad crossing sign with balloons, having it taking off from the railroad tracks, and put castles in the clouds.

Narrator: Green Bay's National Railroad Museum proudly displays Steve's work, awarding new members one of Steve's prints on joining the museum.

Steve: It feels good once something is done knowing that it's going to thousands of people - in this case with the railroad museum, their membership prints.

And so anybody who buys a 50 dollar membership to the museum gets one of my prints.

So it's a way to help the museum to gain more income.

Narrator: Steve's paintings are not only commissioned by the National Railroad Museum, but also by Fortune 500 companies, historical societies, and many private individuals.

Steve: Commission work is tough; sometimes... sometimes it's easy.

You know, "Paint this locomotive number 221- my dad used to be a conductor... here's a picture- that's him standing next to the locomotive", so then its easy.

But a lot of times they don't have a picture of the exact thing they want me to paint.

With commission train work the sky's the limit as far as what they want and you have to bring it down to specifics and say, "ok here's what I'd like to do, I'd like to do a snow scene, I'd like to put a wheat elevator next to the train I'd like to make the logo real big down in the lower left-hand corner if you want."

It just basically having a conversation back and forth.

Narrator: Steve takes the parameters given to him by his clients and soon heads off to lay paint to canvas.

Steve: I enjoy coming down to the basement; it give me solace.

It's a quiet spot for me.

And when I'm painting its almost like my body is going into the painting- it's really weird to take a flat piece of paper and build up the 3-d image, its very satisfying.

Narrator: And when it's time for a drink Steve heads down to the Titletown brewing co. where yet more of his paintings are displayed.

Preserving train history, commemorating those in the railroad industry and personalizing train lover adventures, Steve Krueger's paintings will continue to indelibly graces walls in Green Bay and beyond.

(music) Dave Baule: Hi, I'm Dave Baule- Japan is country that is both ultra-modern and steeped in history and tradition.

A few years back, we traveled to that island nation and came away quite impressed at the Japanese love and appreciation for rail as well.

The Hakone national park not only offers up some of the most amazing vistas in all of Japan, but also features a railway that climbs high into the mountains to views you just have to see to believe.

(music) Narrator: Ever since the 9th Century, the hilly hot spring town of Hakone has been one of the most popular tourist destinations in Japan.

There are enough sites to explore in the area to make it an enjoyable excursion for several days.

To fully experience the Hakone region, we take four railways, including the Red Romance car from Odawara to the Hakone Lake region, an electric line from Yumoto to Goura; a funicular from Goura to Sounzan; and finally a ropeway - or ski gondola - fromSounzan to Owakudani.

After a flight into Tokyo on Japan Airlines, the Japanese National Tourist Organization recommends that we take a half hour ride on the Shinkansen Green Line to Odawara.

There, we purchase a Hakone Free Pass.

For less than 5000 yen, this pass offers unlimited use of the Hakone Tozan Railways, as well as ships on Lake Ashi and many buses in the Hakone area.

We ride the Red Romance car on the Okakyu Line to Hakone-Yumoto station, which is at the end of the line.

This is where the trip gets more adventurous.

Using our free pass, we board the Hakone Tozan Tetsudou train to Goura.

This leg of the trip is known for its steep 8 per cent grades and very sharp curves.

The braking system includes special carborundrum brakes for emergencies.

Kubotera: The train runs over curves of 30 meters in radius.

In order to prevent wheels and track to be worn and to reduce the squeaky sound, driver operate the switch to run water over the rail.

There is a safety brake, beside ordinary brake.

It is manually operated by pushing a switch and a stone called carborundum will be pressured over the rail to stop the train.

There is a hand brake too.

In 1888, it is started as Hakone Horse wagon Railways from Kouzu toYumoto.

It was expanded then from Hakone yumoto to Goura in 1919.

The width gauge of Odakyu and Hakone railways are different.

We use one rail together but not the other one because Odakyu is 1067mm and Hakone Tozan is 1435mm.

Therefore Odakyu runs narrow ones and Hakone runs wider rails.

Narrator: Some of the trams use vintage rolling stock.

If the first tram you get is full, you only have to wait 15 minutes to catch the next one.

Starting in a wooded valley, the Hakone Tozen tram slowly crawls up the mountain - changing directions at three switchbacks - and offers dazzling views around every corner.

The most popular season to take this trip is during June and July when the hydrangea - or ajisai - along the tracks are in full bloom.

But the scenery is breathtaking throughout the year.

Once they arrive in Goura, many adventurous travelers take the funicular to Sounsan, and then the ropeway to Owakudani.

Owakudani is known as the "Valley of Great Boiling."

It is here that you can really understand the origins of this landscape.

The entire area lies above the remains of a collapsed volcano.

Although this particular volcano has not been active for several thousand years, the strong scent of sulfur and the sight of misty plumes of steam are reminders of Japan's volcanic geology.

There are plans to extend the ropeway to Lake Ashi, where we take a boat ride on a pirate ship.

On a clear day, you can gaze up at Mount Fuji's snowy peak.

And you'll also behold the bright red floating "Tori" or gate to Hakone shrine, a majestic architectural treasure that stands as a symbol of the link between Shintoism and the natural world.

Whe we're back on shore, it's the perfect time to take a break to visit the Lalique Museum.

Known for his exquisite glass works and perfume bottles, Rene Lalique was a 19th Century French artist who was greatly influenced by Japanese artistic sensibilities.

Although most people are rather surprised to see such a comprehensive collection of Lalique work here, it makes a lot of sense.

In the late 1800s, when Lalique was at the height of his artistic expression, Japan was ending a long period of isolationism.

The western world became enchanted by Japanese art and architecture; Lalique was no exception.

Now known as Japonism, Japanese-influenced work had a great affect upon the belle-epoque era.

Simple natural motifs, a subtle color palette and delicate lines characterize the art glass that Lalique produced during this time.

There is a connection to railroads here, as the museum features one of the original cars from the famous Orient Express.

Lalique designed the glass panels for this lush interior which conjur up visions of mystery and intrigue as visitors explore this place of railroad history.

A visit to the Lalique museum offers a relaxing respite to a busy day of traveling and puts us in the perfect state of mind to explore the Hakone shrine and walk along lush paths to contemplate the rich heritage of Japan's Imperial Era.

From the breathtaking natural scenery to the ancient rines, our trip to the Hakone region is one we'll not soon forget.

Spencer: Tune in throughout this season to catch even more Classic Trax segments as Dave revisits some of our most favorite segments from these past 25 years on the air.

Well, that's all for this episode.

Please join us next time for more, Tracks Ahead.

(theme music) Announcer: Tracks Ahead.

Brought to you by: Kalmbach Publishing Company and its on-line video magazine, Model Railroader Video Plus.

Walthers.

Manufacturer and supplier of model railroading products, serving the hobby since 1932.

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