All aboard! Next stop: winter and spring fun at model railroad displays round the state of Georgia.

If the holidays got you to thinking about that model train display you painstaking assembled as a kid, you can scratch the itch courtesy of several model railroading clubs scattered around the state. Many have winter or spring shows that welcome the public.

Gone are the days when the Georgia Railroad, Seaboard Railroad and the Atlantic Coast Line moved tons of freight and thousands of passengers every day. The spirit lives on, though, in displays by model railroaders and in collectibles from the days when rails ruled transportation.

If you’re a full-time RVer, you certainly don’t have space for trains. (If you do, send us a photo—we’d be fascinated! Under the platform bed, maybe?) If you’re a part-time RVer, maybe you still have some trains at home and just miss them. (Yes, people with model trains love them that much.)

Choose Your Gauge

Whatever gauge you prefer, you’re bound to find it at one Georgia display or another:

• O scale: 1/45-inch, the scale of the classic Lionel trains with three-rail track
• HO scale: that’s “Half O,” or 1/87, pretty much the standard these days, with two rails
• S scale: 1/64, the measurement of the American Flyer trains, with two rails
• N scale: 1/168, about half the size of HO, to-rail track
• TT scale: 1/120, about halfway between HO and N

56th Atlanta Model Train and Railroadiana Show and Sale

Here’s a place to see six working model train layouts, and buy items from more than 300 vendors, including trains from Lionel, American Flyer, Marklin and Ives, the old Standard gauge toy trains. Tables feature tons of model railroad items and railroadiana—signs, lanterns, tickets, timetables, dining car china, and more. It’s been going on every year for more than half a century, so you know it’s a good one. The venue is new this year and bigger than the previous site.

• Date: Saturday, Jan. 19, 2019
• Time: 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
• Cost: $9; tickets online; $1 discount at www.gserr.com/shows
• Place: Infinite Energy Forum, 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway, Duluth, GA 30097
• Directions: Figure on an hour and 45-minute drive from Crossing Creeks RV Resort and Spa.
• Parking: Free in any of several onsite lots.

30th Annual Model Railroad and Train Show, Savannah

The Coastal Rail Buffs’ 30th Annual Model Railroad and Train Show is just another reason to visit beautiful Savannah—never a bad thing. The show had several operating layouts, in O, HO and N scales. Vendors offer model trains and accessories from tables.

• Dates: Jan. 26 and 27, 2019
• Times: Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
• Place: National Guard Armory, 1248 Eisenhower Drive, Savannah, GA
• Cost: Age 12 and over, $7, except $5 for seniors age 60 and over and students; age 11 and under, free; active military, free.
• Directions: The Savannah armory is about a 5½-hour drive from Crossing Creeks RV Resort and Spa. NOTE: Road closings near the armory may cause delays.
• Parking: Passenger vehicle parking is availabkle in front nd behind the armory, and t nearby municipal lots. Several RV parks offer RV parking in the area.

Georgia State Railroad Museum

As long as you’re in Savannah, check out the Georgia State Railroad Museum. It’s on the site of the old Central of Georgia Railway Savannah Shops and Terminal Facilities in downtown Savannah. It even has a roundhouse and a giant turntable, which positioned locomotives to head into or out of any of several maintenance bays arranged in a semicircle. The museum operates the most complete pre-Civil War railroad in the country. If you’re feeling strong enough, give the handcar a try.

• Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m., 7 days a week
• Cost: $10, age 13 and older; $6, children ages 2-12.
• Tickets: Available online.
• Location: 55 Louisville Rd., Savannah, GA 31401
• Directions: The railroad museum is about a 15-minute drive from the National Guard Armory.

The Model Train Show, Atlanta

It’s back to Atlanta in March for The Model Train Show at Cobb Galleria Centre. Model railroad clubs from around Georgia operate layouts. Gauges on display include O, HO, N, S and TT. There’s also an exhibit by the Dixie Lego Users. The North Georgia Live Steamers display their scale model live steam trains—powerful models big enough to ride. Vendors sell their model railroad wares at about 250 tables. There’s also a white elephant table at which visitors can sell an item or two they enter into a computerized system.

• Dates: Saturday, March 16; Sunday, March 17
• Times: Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
• Place: Cobb Galleria Centre, 2 Galleria Parkway, Exhibit Hall A, Atlanta, GA 30339
• Cost: Age 9 and over, $9; age 8 and under, free; Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts in uniform, free.
• Parking: Passenger vehicle parking at the Galleria is $5 per day, debit or credit only—no cash. RV parking is available at a number of RV parks in the area.
• Directions: Cobb Galleria Center is just off the intersection of Interstates 75 and 285. Plan on a little less or more than a 2-hour drive from Crossing Creeks RV Resort and Spa, depending on your route.

Image courtesy of John Catsoulis, Wikipedia