Ballast Colours
Luis:
Ballast colour varies; that's why woodland scenics makes so many.
For example, there are two railways coming out of Toronto side by side (CP and CN). One has grey ballast and the other has black (cinders). But sometimes on sidings the one changes to a black ballast. It depends on where they get it from and how long it's been in place. Sometimes it's mixed on the same track when the new ballast is different from the old.
Also, grey ballast goes much darker when it's wet.
On double track, the ballast usually is laid all the way across at the bottom of tie level but is put up to the top of the ties where they are with a slope at the end of the ties. Between the tracks there may be a little more of a ditch. On curves, the outer side of the ties is higher than the inner side; the tracks are at the same average level, so there is a larger drop on one side.
On switches, the ballast is kept almost at the bottom of the ties around the points or other moving parts. Around here, it is because of snow.
There are places where the mud comes up and covers the ballast -- there is one point at Toronto Union Station involving one of those double crossovers made of double slip switches where one of the tracks is more of a raw umber colour.
At Brampton station there is a platform on one side. The ballast comes level right to the platform edge but the ballast is made of very small pieces (down to pea size) at the edge going up to fist size in the middle where the track is.
We have a English layout entered and a bunch in N. America but none from Woodie's part of the world 
