Why start this layout?   I was testing DG couplers on US outline stock for my S&ARR HOn30 layout. When I discovered I had inadvertantly built an Inglenook Sidings trackplan I decided to transfer it to a permanent board and create a layout. This layout would use the rolling stock I had already built.

Size of the layout?   As I wanted to run existing stock, of various lengths, the siding length was critical to retain the Inglenook ideal of each siding always taking a fixed number of cars. After much trail and error I determined that I could make this work out by running a maximum of 2 20' cars, 1 28' car with the remainder all being 23'. With this determined, and by using regular Peco 009/HOn30 points, the layout worked out to be 44" long.

Changes to the trackplan?   The layout does have one small change to the true Inglenook Sidings trackplan - the extra point and track to the left provides an interchange track. This will allow one train to be swapped for another one, allowing variety of rolling stock and motive power.

Scenery?   As my other HOn30 layout, the Skowhegan & Athens, was planned to be quite urban/industrial with tall buildings along the backdrop I decided to make this layout more rural. To that end I plan on only a few smaller structures - a passenger depot, a freight depot, a two storey structure to hide the interchange track running through the backdrop, plus possibly one other small building. That does not sound a lot, although they will still have to be built small to avoid overwhelming a 44" x 10" layout.

Location?   Because this layout will be using stock built and lettered for the Skowhegan & Athens and also the Wiscasset & Quebec I wanted a location that would be appropriate. Checking on line maps I found that Lakewood, on the side of Lake Wesserunsett, was near enough to Skowhegan for a branch to have been built. The name will be a location for the layout and nothing more - other than modelling part of a lake I will not be attempting to portray the actual location.

Number of movements?   Will the number of movements on this small layout be limited?
Well I did a calculation into how many different operating puzzles could be run on the layout;
The train to be built is 5 cars from 8, giving 6,720 permuations.
But the starting position of the stock in the yard is also random and has 967,680 permutations.
Multiplying together gives an overall number of different puzzles as 6,502,809,600.
Not bad for 8 freight cars, 3 points and 3 sidings.

How long until the layout will be complete?   A small layout such as this will be completed in no time, right? Well, perhaps not - because I really do have more of an interest in building rolling stock rather than layouts, and other interests which also take up my free time, I can honestly predict that progress on this layout will be quite slow. I do expect to complete it eventually, but I am certainly not putting a time limit on it.