The ties are heavily buried/concealed in the former NKP lines that run through my area. I ballasted my Fastrack in a similar manner. I also sprinkled green foliage on it to represent vegetation on the tracks.
I’ve now converted my layout to Atlas track, but haven’t yet ballasted it. I’m still planning on how to do so. I like the ballast spreaders, but they make everything come out “too neat” to my eye since the whole top surface and much of the ends of each tie are exposed. The tracks in my area don’t appear that way with, again, the ties being largely buried.
I’ll keep searching the forum photo galleries for ideas.
