All aboard!

As the Alaska Railroad engine pulls out of Cache Creek Valley Railroad Station, it winds its way past a church, around Copper Lake and through several other communities.

If it doesn't sound like a trip you've taken on the Alaska Railroad, that's for good reason -- the elaborate set of train tracks run through Palmer resident Karin Schwarzer's yard.

It is the culmination of a year and a half of work, and more importantly, therapy. She had a smaller train project last year, and started on this large project in May.

"I've got rheumatoid arthritis, and I've always believed that if things get tough in life, you do something," Schwarzer said. "It's good therapy for me to work at it. It was always a dream of mine as a teen-ager to have a large outdoor train, one that you could ride.

"I started in May thinking it was a two- or three-week project," Schwarzer said. "It turned into a two- or three-month project."

While you can't ride the Cache Creek Valley Railroad, you certainly can be amazed by the intricacies of Schwarzer's work. At the church, for example, you'll find minute tombstones, giving it an authentic feel. There are a couple lakes, creeks and even a waterfall that is all accomplished through underground plumbing.

"Nobody taught me how to do anything. I taught myself it all. I think I'm the most proud about that," Schwarzer said. "The plumbing I completely had to figure out on my own."

The track is made of brass, and Schwarzer said she got a good deal on it when a hobby shop went out of business. She has picked up pieces for the track at hardware stores and other shops, and by now, the employees there have gotten interested in her project. Motorists have even stopped to see what the track project is all about.

"I had a neighbor stop by and say, 'OK, I can't stand it anymore. I've got to know what you're doing out here. I drive by all the time and wonder,'" Schwarzer said with a laugh.

The living portion of the track includes perennials, annuals and tree shrubs taken from various adventures in the Mat-Su Valley.

"Some of the trees are from an island on the Matanuska River," Schwarzer said. "I wanted it to look exactly like the Valley."

The most visible part is a large cache that stands in the middle of the entire train project. It's a project that looks good from a distance, and amazing from up close. No details were left out, Schwarzer said.

Schwarzer is a retired goldsmith who used to own her own jewelry business. Rheumatoid arthritis forced her to retire, and now she uses the train project as a therapy.

"There are days I can't do anything with it, and days I can do a lot," Schwarzer said. "The neat thing about it is that about 99.99 percent of the people who are into trains are men. Even my best friend just shakes her head about my trains."

Schwarzer is a compassionate woman who cares about her family, as well as mankind's family. For years she has donated to an organization that provides bulletproof vests to children in Israel. Sunday, she was one of nine Americans to arrive in Israel to tour the volatile West Bank.

She and her convoy will be guarded by IDF guards throughout the trip, and although she knows it is a dangerous and hostile place for Americans to visit, she is going with a purpose that is much greater than the risks she is taking, she said.

"We are going in solidarity for the Israeli people, and especially the Israeli children," Schwarzer said. "They know we are Christians, but we aren't there to proselytize, though.

"We're taking blankets for children who get stuck in busses for hours because of bombings. They need our help, and that's why we're going," Schwarzer said.

She is scheduled to be in Israel for 11 days.