I usually try and get to this show – it’s local, there are often some good layouts, and excellent trade (if you want to buy more American trains.)  But on Saturday, I had offered to do a hospital run to take someone to an appointment at Crawley Hospital.  So I turned down both a lift to this show, and one to the West Sussex open day.

As it turned out, I had dropped my passenger at the hospital, driven back for a quick visit to Hobbycraft, and found that the hospital restaurant and its breakfast was shut on Saturday.  But it then occurred to me that I was five minutes walk from the Charis Centre and the Seaboard Southern show – and that it was about to open.

So I paid a flying visit, not long as the hospital appointment was quicker than expected.  The show seemed a little smaller than previous years, but there were some good layouts.  And worth the price of admission for a chat with Jon, ‘the blue box man.’  So to the layouts….

Stevens Point (HO) was an interesting take on the loco depot/service area theme, based on the Wisconsin Central.  Some nice snow ploughs and service stock to be seen as well as the locos.

Minocqua Falls was a large, but simple, modular ‘O’ gauge layout.  I enjoyed watching the trains go by – they have real ‘mass’ in O gauge.

Some switching at Lynneton Yard – a shunting puzzle that was open to the public!  I refrained from having a go.

Ian Lampkin’s Santa Barbara is always a delight to see, though I viewed the layout just before the train service started.

Owl Creek Brewery (ON30) had some very good scratch built buildings on show.

Finally, Kitwood Junction had an interesting mix of O and ON30 trains.  I especially liked the narrow gauge sugar cane cars!

I’m glad I made the show – well worth a quick visit and I shall be back next year.