I moved from NY where there was a lot of train club activity to the Northern Oregon Coast. I am having a tough time finding any train interest, especially involving train clubs-Does anyone know of any? Much appreciated-Rolf
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Hi Rolf,
Try calling The Hobby Smith or Whistle Stop Trains in Portland. I travel to the Oregon Coast almost every summer and absolutely love it. However, I inquired several years ago about train clubs/shows and received limited response. In So Cal, I drive 1 1/2 hours to get to TTOS and TCA club meets. Portland is probably that long of a drive for you, but worth it for a good club.
Bob
Rolf,
There's good news. I have had a similar situation, having moved to Portland from Ithaca, NY 6 years ago. Although you will not find anything that compares to the York meet (still get there once a year), there are several good clubs and train fairs in northern OR and southern WA including Portland, Rickreall, Eugene, and Centralia. TCA has several local clubs and meets. Great Train Shows usually has a fairly large show in Portland each January. There are also several local train societies that hold meets. Both hobby shops mentioned by Bob are great resources for parts, service, and information on meets.
Hope this helps.
Michael
Hello Rolf,
Welcome to Oregon. How far up the Northern Oregon Coast are you? Are you a member of TCA and/or TTOS?
The Portland Chapter of TCA has a dedicated group of members that meet monthly in Aloha which is west of Portland on the way to the coast. The clubhouse is in an old mall basement and has a good sized, nicely executed O gauge layout along with a separate layout with a loop of standard gauge and a couple of loops of AF S gauge track. The S gauge is in dire need of some refreshing, a project I hope to find time to tackle this year.
The Pacific Northwest Division of TTOS holds a meeting nearly every month in members homes in the Seattle/Portland area. Many of the SW Washington and Oregon members are also members of the PDX TCA Chapter. The schedules of both these groups are published in the respective magazines of both organizations. Joining the local divisions and chapters will also get you newsletters with up-to-date activity information.
There is an ad hoc unaffiliated group of us that get together fairly regularly in a friends basement Tigard to run and talk toy trains. These gatherings have often resulted in postings on YouTube.
As you face as well, distance along with other travel and family commitments makes my attendance at any of these gatherings sporadic at best; however, I enjoy getting to those that I can when the stars align and I find that I can do so. My wife especially enjoys the TTOS meets in members' homes, and many of the wives have become quite good friends.
I live in Keizer about 35 miles south of Portland but keep a house in Lincoln City as well. I have not moved any trains into the Lincoln City house yet, but I am trying to figure out a way to do so. I haven't met any train folks nearby since purchasing our home there, but I have been too busy with other projects to really make the effort yet. The TCA Directory lists a gentleman in the community of Tillamook several miles north of Lincoln City on Highway 101. I hope to get a chance to make contact with him some time soon as apparently he is into American Flyer like me.
Perhaps we can get together sometime.
Cheers!
Alan
