[soubuckeye]

I can't really post a picture of this build, as its simply too frickin big.

I've finally completed a railroad that runs from my "city" of Buckeye, northward to where the current spawn points are for Hills and Plains.  To run the entire route takes about 7 minutes, 30 seconds.  There are two legs to the trip.  There is an NPC village I've dubbed "Rock Ridge" (Ever seen Blazing Saddles?) at the halfway point.

Buckeye to Rock Ridge: 3:30
Rock Ridge to Northern Depot: 4:00

Northern Terminus: -12511, -11578
Southern Terminus (Buckeye): -12487, -8962

The Buckeye Terminal includes an arrival track and a departure track.  Arriving minecarts go into a hopper system that feed them back into the dispenser for the departure track.  Just outside of the city walls of Buckeye, there is an interlocking tower that can switch minecarts to a spur track to a quarry.

At Rock Ridge, there is a small depot.

The Northern Depot includes a boat dock, as it's at the water's edge closer to the spawn landings I mentioned earlier.

I'm setting out a signed book at the Plains spawn point to direct people towards the northern depot for those who want to ride.

-soubuckeye

[RTab]

This sounds amazing man! i need to check this out!

[Zito]

This is awesome! Next chance I gey I'm going to ride it!

[soubuckeye]

If you go to the current Plains warp spawn, I've got directions on how to get there.  It's the closest spawning point to the northern terminal. 

Just put the written books back, please.

-Eric

[Zito]

Will do, thanks!

[soubuckeye]

Ok... So here's some photos from a trip or two across the Buckeye & Northern, just to give an idea of the scope of this project.  BTW... This does not come close to showing all of the bridges and tunnels that I had to build.  I'm guessing around 8 or 9 tunnels of varying length, and about a dozen bridges.  Then there's the cuts and fills I made to keep the ups and downs at a minimum.

http://postimg.org/gallery/ashyqtye/1ffa8e44/

A: The main terminal depot in Buckeye.

B: Showing the arrival and departure tracks at Buckeye.  Our cart is already waiting for us on Track 2.

C: Leaving the station at Buckeye, we crossed a road, and can see some of the NPC houses under construction

D: Protected by a city wall, Buckeye has an automated mob barrier that will open to let us through.  Strangely enough, the iron bars attach to the side opposite from the sticky piston, but the system works.

E: This is Quarry Tower, which governs a switch that has a spur line to Buckeye Quarry, off to our left.

F: You can see the spur for Buckeye Quarry as it ends under the massive crane for the quarry

G: One of the numerous stone arch bridges along the route to Rock Ridge.  You can also see a tunnel portal.  I believe that's Tunnel #4.  Buckeye is to the right (rail south).

H: On the way to Rock Ridge from Buckeye.  This long causeway span bridges the two main land masses the B&N crosses.

I: This stone arch bridge is just south (rail-wise) from Rock Ridge, and is the last bridge before coming into the peaceful town of Rock Ridge. 

J: The little depot at Rock Ridge.  All trains stop here, and a button is pressed to continue.  This marks the end of the Buckeye district, and the end of Phase I of the project.

K: Just north (rail-wise) of Rock Ridge.  This is the segment that denotes Phase II of the project, and I've dubbed this the North District.

L: Another shot of that long stone causeway that bridges the two landmasses.  This was about the halfway point of the Buckeye District.

M: Another bridge and tunnel portal.  I can't recall if this is on the Buckeye District, or North District.

N: This might be my favorite bridge on the whole railroad.  I got tired of doing the stone causeway and stone arch designs, and I wondered if I could pull off a truss bridge.  Looks like a 5-span Warren Truss bridge design to me.  I have a low causeway bridge to the left of it, appropriate for the swamp land we're in.

O: This is a "snow shed" design, like you might see on real railroads in the Rocky Mountains.  I built this because I had an issue with cows and pigs getting onto the tracks through here and causing an issue.

P:  A panoramic photo showing just how I had to work my butt off to route this railroad.  Two biomes I tried to avoid was Jungle and Extreme Hills.  On the Northern District, I ended up getting to a low Y level (close to water level) and following rivers.  But it was here that I had no choice but to cross a stretch of Extreme Hills.  I surveyed this route out twice, and even started digging a grade along the mound to the right before a sharp left tunnel right through it, but went this route instead.  Just like the real railroad, I had to plan out the easiest route with the fewest climbs and drops.  That's what led to so many bridges and tunnels.

Q: This is the Northern Terminal from the sea.  You can see the dock for folks traveling from the Plains spawn, on the other side of the water.

And finally....

R:  The platform at the Northern Terminal.  A minecart is patiently waiting for its rider.

R: This is the terminal area at

[Devo_008]

Very nice man love the build and the dedication to making a huge railroad like that

[Zito]

It looks amazing! Just curious, how long did this project take you?

[Obi42]

The Northern Terminal is out of Minecarts... I may like your railway a little too much. 

[Zito]

Why don't you replace them Obi?

[Tslat]

Or ride a few of them back..

[Zito]

^

[Obi42]

The dispenser is locked, and so is the button for the return trip at the town... i didn't think to check if I could reload the dispenser by riding a cart into it though.  I put a chest there with some carts the other day, when I get on later I'll see if I can feed them in.

[Obi42]

No joy, the northern terminal doesn't have the nifty reloader thingey that the town does... I'll keep the temp box loaded for now.

[Zito]

Sounds good! It's awesome that you are even doing that!