Recently I was travelling on a flight out of Albuquerque, New Mexico when I spotted an oval of railway track unexpectedly plonked down in the desert. It looked very like a simple layout of Hornby model railway track with some short sidings.
Later I searched for it on Google maps satellite images and found it. You can find it yourself. It is located about 8 miles due west of Double Eagle Airport which is west of Albuquerque.
I decided to do a 'Constance Babington Smith' (look her up on Google!) and enlarged the image as much as I could to see if I work out what was going on there. Is that a steam loco in the station? Is it a film set?
Who would build an oval of track in the desert? There does seem to a line heading off the south to join the BNSF main line. May be it is a military railway like Longmoor? For training they need an oval so you don't have to keep running around at terminii.
Searching the internet, I find nothing on maps of the New Mexico rail system (operating, disused and dismantled).
Any ideas ?
Later I searched for it on Google maps satellite images and found it. You can find it yourself. It is located about 8 miles due west of Double Eagle Airport which is west of Albuquerque.
I decided to do a 'Constance Babington Smith' (look her up on Google!) and enlarged the image as much as I could to see if I work out what was going on there. Is that a steam loco in the station? Is it a film set?
Who would build an oval of track in the desert? There does seem to a line heading off the south to join the BNSF main line. May be it is a military railway like Longmoor? For training they need an oval so you don't have to keep running around at terminii.
Searching the internet, I find nothing on maps of the New Mexico rail system (operating, disused and dismantled).
Any ideas ?