After four years of work, more than 50,000 working hours and almost 2,000,000 Euro construction cost, the new section of Patagonia in Miniatur Wunderland was opened. As you know, Patagonia is a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. Patagonia is bounded by the Pacific Ocean on the west, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the famous Drake Passage to the south.
The 65-square-meter section wants to depict many typical attractions of Patagonia in 1/87 scale, for example, the Perito Moreno Glacier, where every few minutes blocks of ice crash into the water, or the Mount Fitz Roy, one of the main attractions of Argentina. The sun disappears at one end of the model railway layout and rises at the other end of the model railroad layout. There are not only the modern trains operated by the state-owned railway company called “Tren Patagónico”, but also the old steam trains running on narrow-gauge tracks and widely known as “La Trochita”.
In order to present Patagonia authentically, also the life of the gauchos is depicted. On the model rail layout, the gauchos traditionally wear ponchos and hats and live as cattle herders and ranchers in the Patagonian wilderness. In Miniatur Wunderland, they enjoy a barbecue after their hard work is done. But we experience a special feature when a storm is brewing, the sea becomes rough and the sky darkens at the Drake Passage, the strait between Antarctica and Cape Horn. This natural spectacle is recreated extremely realistically by an elaborate combination of complex wave mechanics and visual projections. The play of light, which simulates not only day and night, but also a threatening thunderstorm, offers a unique experience.
YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eVmEqt2p4I
Image Source: Miniatur Wunderland GmbH
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steam train steam trains model railway model railroad model railroading model rail ferromodelismo trenes electricos trains model train model trains trenes electricos a escala layout Patagonia HO scale Miniatur Wunderland Argentina Chile Drake Passage 1/87 diorama model railway layout model railroad layout Tren Patagónico La Trochita Antarctica Cape Horn Pilentum