There’s always something new to see during Coupeville resident Jack Tingstad’s annual model railroad open house.

The retired Coupeville Elementary School teach is always tinkering with his trains and adding new details.

Tingstad will open his home and train display to the public for two days this weekend. This is his 15th year of hosting an open house.

“There are a lot of little scenes,” Tingstad said. “I’m always adding those kinds of things.”

His display, which fills a 21-by-12-foot room, is called Cloud City & Western, and features scenes from central Colorado’s mining district around Leadville.

Tingstad has put his emphasis on the rugged mountain scenery of Tennessee Pass and the shear cliffs of Glenwood Canyon.

A major feature is the scratch-built, award-winning New Crystal River Mine along with the old dilapidated one which hug the side of Mount Massive.

Constructing the hobby display has taken years and much ingenuity.

From basic construction skills needed to build a wooden base to wiring of the rail system, Tingstad has become what one might consider a Jack-of-all-Trades.

The rugged mountains of Colorado are built using plaster and molds, some buildings are built from scratch and much of the scenery is hand painted.

Over the years Tingstad’s display has received regional and national recognition. It has appeared twice in Railroad Model Craftsman, a national hobby magazine, and in the May 2011 issue of Model Railroad Hobbyist, a web magazine.

It has become recognized for its excellence in scenery, structures and electrical wiring. It has been featured on tours of the Northwest’s finest layouts for the railroader community.

Tingstad said he’s been interested in model railroads since his adolescents.

When he retired in 1995, he had more time to devote to his hobby. He started his current display 18 years ago and it took three years before he felt it was ready for the public.

“When I started this I knew I would do open houses,” Tingstad said. “I guess that’s the teacher in me.”

So each year, Tingstad opens his doors to the public for the Saturday and Sunday after Thanksgiving.

The display is built so it’s handicap accessible and affords close-up views of many steam-era locomotives and cars as well as mini-scenes depicting horse-and-buggy life in the Old West.

“If you look around, you’ll see 10 or so outhouses,” Tingstad

There’s much to see throughout the display from towns to more rural scenes, including Tingstad’s favorite featuring people fishing and bathing by a riverside.

Tingstand said his favorite scene features a man bathing in a bucket by the river because the tiny people were ones he hand-painted himself.

To make things even more interesting, Tingstad has created a scavenger hunt of sorts for visitors. He has a list of things within the display for people to find.

“This not only is fun, but sharpens their observation skills,” he said.

This year, open house hours will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at his house, located at 508 Broadway Street. Tingstad is asking guests to bring a donation for Gifts From the Heart food bank.

As a volunteer, Tingstad started asking for donations about four years ago. Each year he gets 200-300 visitors and about 500 pounds of food.