Tulsa Garden Railroad Club Offers Tours

Chris Howell, NewsOn6.com

TULSA, OK -- The Tulsa Garden Railroad Club is holding its fourth annual tour this Saturday and club members like Joe Salamon are eager to show off what has been a lifelong passion for him.

"Ever since I was a little kid, had trains inside the house," explained Joe.  "Expanded inside the house too much and my wife said ‘hey, it's time to go outside', so my son gave me my first G-scale outdoor and you can see what happened."

Joe's trains took over, that's what happened.  They run through every corner of Joe's backyard. And he isn't finished yet, not by a long shot.

"There's always a desire-do I buy another train?  This one looks pretty good.  This one might work here, so yeah, there's always something," said Joe.

Fellow club member Eric Olson shares Joe's love of garden railroads.

"Of course it's a wonderful hobby because you never complete it," Eric said.  "I add on to it all the time, new building, new structures, and it's of course an engrossing thing."

It's obviously engrossing for Joe as well.  He has plenty of different types of trains.

"Got U.S.A., got Aristocraft, got L.G.B., got some Bachman cars, so it's a variety.  You can spend high-dollar on the L.G.B., you can go a little lower on the budget and get some of the other ones.  They all look good to me.  What is it, the ten-foot rule?  Stand back ten foot, see how it looks."

And it does look good-from any angle, it also looks like a lot of work.

"No matter what, there's always something to do," Joe said.  "You come out and work on the railroad and run trains.  It's a neat little hobby, I enjoy quite a bit of it."

Admission is free but donations are gladly accepted.

Visit the club's web site for details and maps.