ahh…what would i do without you guys. i must say that since “joining” you guys have helped me out alot. know if i can find the time to do it…lol 
thanks again!
I cook dirt for a living. Honestly. Have iron skillets and a coleman stove on the back of my truck. Don’t over cook dirt though, you can actually burn it and turn it black.
Only somebody who has worked as a soils tech can truly appreciate this statement. [:D][:D][:D]
I did all my dirt cooking in the lab though.
I use sheetrock spakling compound spread out on the base. put it on not flat but as if there is a slight rise away from the front of the base. As it slowly dries, I use a flat form, e.g. a putty knife to drag along the surface to make the road. Don’t wait too long to do this or it will be too dry. I then sprinkle sand purchased from a crafts store ( any color) on the surface and stick a rock or two into the compound. After it dries two or three days. I spray or paint on a dark brown color making sure to cover any folds and the base of the rock. I then use a light sand or tan color and either dry brush or spray with my airbrush almost parallel to the base this way the color seems to be wind driven from one direction . I then lighten the higher areas staying away from the dark folds . I just did this technique for a road for my Dingo Scout car in North Africa cira 1942. I must say it came out smashingly good
seems like everywhere i have lived since i have been doing models (10 or so yrs) i have had a hole in the basementfloor…er, umm… by the sewer cap…lol but i just use this dirt, … i pour white glue onto my base, spread it around with a flat peice of cardboard, then pour the dirt on. i then mat it down with my hands, wait an hour or so til it dries completely, then tip it upside down to let the excess fall off…then i add rocks and the bigger stuff individually. its worked now for years… as far as hills etc, i agree with the whole styrofoam thing, but i use plaster, or wall plaster etc to make the actual hills, then i do the same as far as the glue is concerend…
hope this helps.
about the sand and Elmers glue…can i paint the sand after it’s dry?
would it look muddy? can i use an earth color enamel that is thinned?
thanks!