Modelling Lives
Tales from the model-making community.
Kosta Kowatschew discovered the beauty of the Highlands while in quarantine.
Two weeks in quarantine led Swiss-based Kosta Kowatschew to discover the beauty of the Scottish Highlands – and an obsession with recreating them in miniature.
Grüezi from Switzerland! No, this isn’t an awkward pandemic holiday ad. Neither have you accidentally bought the wrong magazine. This is about a guy from Zurich and his unusual love for modelling British railways. Now, you might wonder why someone living in a country with majestic mountains and daring cogwheel railways would keep himself busy with railways from Scotland. You may think he was bananas! Well, maybe I am.
I’m a 43-year-old native Berliner, but I’ve been living in Switzerland (almost next door to Tina Turner) for nearly half of my life. I won’t bore you with how I got into model railways, or with details of my job as a station manager. Instead, let’s have a look at why I’m more interested in ‘Macrats’ and ‘Black Fives’, than double-decked trains and scenic mountain railways.
Back in 2011, the swine flu pandemic was raging and, after visiting Australia, I went into quarantine after testing positive with the virus. Netflix didn’t exist back then, so regular TV was my companion during isolation. I’d never been a fan of Harry Potter before, but watching the movies repeatedly seemed a better choice than binge-watching silly talk shows. It was in one of those movies that I saw the ‘Hogwarts Express’ passing through a breathtaking landscape, which immediately grabbed my interest.
With time on my hands, I began researching the filming locations, and a few weeks (and a ridiculously large credit card bill) later, I found myself riding a Scotrail Class 156 from Glasgow to Fort William. It must have been shortly past Rannoch, when my eyes fell on never-ending fields of green, yellow and brown, with shallow waters stretching into a loch on the horizon, as the sun set behind heavy rain clouds. I fell in love with the Highlands instantly.
The next day, I climbed Ben Nevis via the Carn
Beag Dearg route in heavy snowfall and bright sunshine at the same time, with temperatures ranging from 0 to 23ºc. A day later, I took my first steam-powered journey on British rails, riding ‘The Jacobite’ from Fort William to Mallaig. I returned to Zurich with a bottle of Islay whisky, an ‘N’ gauge replica of the Mk 1 TSO I’d ridden on the ‘Jacobite’ and lots of memories and ideas on how to build my own little piece of Scotland in Switzerland.
Over the years, I’ve revisited Scotland on numerous occasions and made both online and offline friends who provide me with priceless knowledge and inspiration for my modelling projects. As a side note, my partner and I got married in kilts and celebrated our honeymoon in the far north!
It’s a real drawback that there’s never been – and still isn’t – a single hobby shop in Switzerland offering products from Graham Farish or the like. I guess British outline ‘Kings’, ‘Tractors’ and ‘Sheds’ look strange to the continental European modeller. VAT and customs on items ordered online from the UK add extra cost. Yet my rolling stock for the West Highland Line and my whisky collection have still grown considerably. I’m still waiting for an ‘N’ gauge LNER ‘K2’ though!
I’ve developed a deeper interest not only in the West Highland Lines, but also in the Killin Branch, Kyle and Far North Lines, and I’m taking regular plunges into researching the Conwy Valley, Hayle Wharves branch lines and the Weymouth Harbour Railway. All of which have led to micro layout ideas and justified investment in non-scottish rolling stock. I’m also fascinated by the little-known Leadhill & Wanlockhead narrow gauge railway, leading me to consider building a ‘OO9’ micro in future.
That said, I love challenges and enjoy working on little projects that can be finished in a short period of time. I have already built some micro layouts and lots of dioramas in the past few years. And I find a lot of pleasure in showing them off online, either in the only German-speaking ‘Britische Bahn Forum’, on Instagram or various Facebook groups. I take special pride in comments on my skills making everything look ‘genuinely Scottish’. Especially when people realise where I’m situated. Such feedback gives me motivation to finish plans for a future ‘Highlands & Islands’ empire.
I want to grab the opportunity to thank Sophie Brown, Andrew J. Ditton, John Maher, Neil Rushby, Derik Mclay, Paul Marshall-potter, Amy Henwood and, of course, George Dent and Chris Nevard at Model Rail for your regular inspiration, appreciation and support. Ciao zämme!
Modeller CV:
Kosta Kowatschew is a life-long railway modeller and a station manager on the Swiss Federal Railway.