We are still very much in Christmas holiday mode here in Yarrow. Today, the house will soon be full of family and friends.

As I relax in the quiet before the festivities start, my mind wanders out to the shop. It is quiet now and has been for five days but as the new year rolls around it will be busier than ever. I do not overthink my projects as I design them. Instead I do fairly loose concept drawings, confident we will work out the details as we build. Inevitably, as the start date approaches my mind begins to focus in on the project, working out the details and construction methods we will use.

In the quiet moments of the last few days that process has begun. The project is WhistlePunk Hollow Adventure Golf in Squamish, British Columbia. The first major piece will be the logging steam engine that will perch on the heavy wooden trestle.

We've built a number of large trains previously in our shop and much of the project is clear in my mind. The geared wheel sets of the engine are what I am thinking about currently. I have plenty of historical photographic reference to draw on. My task will be to translate this information to a bit simpler cartoon style that still looks authentic.

These are the kinds of project I most enjoy. I look forward to the challenge with great anticipation!

-grampa dan