Steamshots USA..Lets See Some Steam Shots..

Yes, Ken, they are on the DLS as <kuid2:210518:8963:1> YVRR Hopper Car and <kuid2:210518:10191:1> YVRR_Hopper_Car_2 by bendorsey.





Most of the new replacement trees are mcguirel's Payware Ponderosa Pines and Douglas Firs from 40 - 60 meters with a few 70-80 meter trees mixed in.
 
YVRR somewhat modified.
The addition of a few thousand trees in that canyon would be a heck of a modification in real life, but in trainz its two buttons and done. Honestly I didn't even recognize it as the YVRR at first, but it looks like its own unique and enjoyable route. Do you ever do videos of these layouts you are working on?
 
Actually I did not add a single tree. :D ballcd had dozens of non-native tree types in the upper section of the route. I went through and bulk asset replaced each with a different version of mcguirel's pines that were native to that area of the Sierras. Sadly there are no speedtree Sugar Pines or Western White Pines. That area was heavily logged from the mid 1800s on but it could have looked like this in the early days of the railroad.

I have not even looked at producing videos but here's some more screenies.





 
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Actually I did not add a single tree. :D ballcd had dozens of non-native tree types in the upper section of the route. I went through and bulk asset replaced each with a different version of mcguirel's pines that were native to that area of the Sierras. Sadly there are no speedtree Sugar Pines or Western White Pines. That area was heavily logged from the mid 1800s on but it could have looked like this in the early days of the railroad.

I have not even looked at producing videos but here's some more screenies.
All the good lumber came off the tops of the ridges. In the canyon almost all the trees are down by the river and are mostly small trees and oaks. Here is what the canyon looks like.

In both shots the person is standing on the old roadbed. Like I said it makes the route look new and different. It still looks amazing. Are you still using the TSM track?
Also, in so that I don't completely de-rail this thread.
 
The track is <kuid2:156765:101176:1> ST 100# Jointed Rail Track [A/Rust/Old] by Jointed Rail. I have not changed the rails and there are many stretches of TSM track about but that section is the Jointed Rails stuff.

heh, great minds...



Google Earth shot from El Portal looking west. You will note that the southern slopes are more heavily forested and that almost all the large trees are Ponderosa Pines. They have a distinctive dusty olive color I can see quite a few from my living room window. It is difficult to judge just how much the original forest covered. Much of early San Francisco, Sacramento and L.A. were built from lumber hauled from here. I have not explored the protected areas to get a clearer idea of exact coverage. Most of the later logging was done on the ridges but I guess that by then most the valley had been pretty much clear cut.

It is much the same here in the Napa Valley much of the lower eastern slopes were clear cut for timber both for construction, railroad ties, and fuel. The surviving stands of pines are all along the ridges, mostly second growth. Live Oak, scrub bushes and Ponderosa Pine are slowly reclaiming the lower slopes.
 
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Okay guys, I can't find this kuid that Ben Neal says is on the DLS, but it isn't. kuid2:527940:100086:4 (DLS). Can someone help?
 
Norm those shots you've been showing off from the Yosemite Valley are absolutely gorgeous! Great work.

Following NP X1775 north along the Blackwater Branch to Beaumont where the loco sits outside of the local co-op while the crew discusses with the owner the loads.
 
All the good lumber came off the tops of the ridges. In the canyon almost all the trees are down by the river and are mostly small trees and oaks. Here is what the canyon looks like.



In both shots the person is standing on the old roadbed.

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In these days of climate change, you wouldn't get the result that is in these photos. It's a sad result, and an even sadder gift to later generations.

Nowadays, timber harvesting is replete with environmental controls. Governments are now saying, "For every tree that is logged using traditional methods, 10 to 20 others are severely damaged. These trees are left to rot, producing carbon emissions as they decompose."

Well, get you ready for your climate change stickers on your rolling stock and your new signage "Reduced-impact Logging, Reduced Forest Degradation" ... for the days of climate change and REDD are here to stay. (REDD is reduction of environmental degradation damage, something the United Nations manages)...
 
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