How To Track Plan Database The ZigZag Valley Railroad in HO scale

The ZigZag Valley Railroad in HO scale

By Mitch Horner | February 9, 2026

Inspired by the Mt. Hood RR, this short line continued to grow over its 30-year lifetime

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Facts and features

Name: ZigZag Valley RR (ZZVR)
Scale: HO (1:87.1)
Size: 23′-6″ x 44′-5″
Prototype: BNSF Ry. and Mt. Hood RR
Locale: Pacific Northwest
Era: June 1998
Style: around-the-walls
Mainline run: 460 feet
Minimum radius: 24″
Minimum turnout: No. 6 main line, No. 5 yards
Maximum grade: 2%
Benchwork: a combination of studwall, L-girder, cookie cutter, and cantilever
Height: 44″ to 52″Roadbed: cork
Track: Shinohara code 83
Scenery: plaster cloth over cardboard strips
Backdrop: hand-painted and photo mural
Control: Digitrax DCC

A track plan for the zig zag valley model railroad layout
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