San Diego Model Railroad Museum: Where Gumbo Was #39

Actually, this is a tale of Where Gumbo is Going, because in fact he hasn’t yet made it to this largest of all U.S. model railroad museums. Of course, there are conflicting claims, but…

I’m going to Los Angeles for a while in July, and a side-trip to San Diego’s Balboa Park to see the museum is in my plans. This museum is especially notable because a number of its layouts are HO (1/87) scale models of very long stretches of existing railroads.  It’s in San Diego’s Balboa Park, and is noted for careful and accurate models by a number of area clubs of very long stretches of actual railroads. The Tehachapi Pass exhibit models 70 miles of actual railroad, curve-for-curve and switch-for switch!

One thing I noticed in selecting the picture for this puzzle: it’s not easy finding model shots that can stand up to scrutiny. Close up, as this photo by Gabriel Hauser was done, the detailing has to be very good to not give away the show. At a greater distance, as you’ll notice in these other shots, the photographer focuses closely on the model and lets the layout “fuzz out” to avoid too much scrutiny!

Here’s a LINK for the museum…