Down the track a model train rolled in West Park Mall as conductor Tom Mower smiled, holding a wireless remote control.
The Quesnel Model Railway Club has been busy settling in their new home.
Since September, wood has been cut, buildings have been painted, and track wiring has been installed drawing the attention of people passing by amid the loud train whistles.
A wooden platform offers a much better view for those not tall enough.
”It’s a never-ending project,” Mower said.
“We got a big forest up there we’re going to put in and a logging area up there,” he continued pointing to areas with future plans.
“On the other loop where the train is now is going to be Whistler Village…The buildings down at the far end are from 1955.”
Mower still has the first train set he got in 1958 on his tenth birthday, and his fascination with the magical world of trains has only grown.
He recalled going to the world’s largest model railroad, Miniatur Wunderland, in Hamburg, Germany, early in the morning and getting dragged out late in the day by his wife.
Read More: Quesnel Model Railway Club finds new home at West Park Mall
“I’ve been a fanatic, I guess, but that’s what I do,” Mower said. “You only get out of a club what you put into it, and I really enjoy it.”
Before taking up location at the West Park Mall, the Quesnel Model Railway Club had been without a home for the past couple of years following their last run at Maple Park Mall.
Their leasing agreement is for two years with a renewal option.
“I was not part of the railroad,” Mower said of his past jobs that included logging and retirement from Inland Kenworth.
“That’s the fun part of this; I am doing something completely different than what I did when I was working.”
There are no admission fees to visit the Quesnel Model Railway Club that is open Saturdays and Sundays.
The Quesnel Model Railway Club currently has 12 members.
“We say it’s a very informal club; we just have a lot of fun,” said Mower.
“We enjoy showing the trains to everybody-the kids and the big kids.”
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