This is to be a multi-level railway, with different terrain heights. The South Downs are, after all, hills! This is being done in a small way, with no massive structures, but nevertheless I've had to learn the basics. I have never made a model railway before, so this is all new. I purchased "The Scenery Manual" from the Woodland Scenics range to get ideas of what to do.
Clanfield station is a fictitious station set at the top of the South Downs. Hills in the vicinity, and rising trackwork, might then be expected. So far all I had was plywood bases for the track areas, and gaps in between; and there is a need to separate Clanfield from Petersfield station behind it. Throw in a reverse loop emerging from the fiddle yard behind Clanfield, that joins the main line some way down, and there were several objects to "hide" from each other.
The solution to separate Clanfield from Petersfield was to put a hill between the two. There is a local landmark in Clanfield - "Windmill Hill" which has a working windmill on top. The model would do the same. The hill conveniently covers the reverse loop track: BUT I have a rule that any track must be accessible for maintenance; so the hill would need to be removable.
The first stage was to use cardboard to establish the hill's shape and size. I was able to cut out a template for the base, and a higher level section to estimate the height. This was sufficient to tell me that the hill would fit, and separate the views of the two areas. The tunnel portal for the reverse loop can be seen.
The next step was to fill in the terrain around it, establishing the context. The main line is essentially in a one sided curring, sloping up behind the track. With some shaping around the base of the hill, the terrain in the area was established. I created plywood formers for the base of the "fixed" higher ground, and the base of the removable hill. I also added a flat "top" for the hill again in plywood, which is where the windmill will sit. A 30mm hole is bored in the plywood base for access for wiring.
