The MoHo and Other Traveling Tales

Five Covered Bridges, Springfield to Cascadia

Clicking on the linked bridge names will take you to Bridgehunter.com with historical information about each bridge, location maps and photos. Hovering with your mouse over the photos will give you the name of the bridge as well. Again, the google map and link to our tour is here. My picasaweb/google photo albums have many additional photos of the bridges and our trip.

We planned our next day of bridge hunting from Eugene with the thought of a lovely morning walk along the trail before traveling east and north toward Cascadia. We also had to make a decision to give up traveling to some wonderful bridges east on the MacKenzie Highway and save those for another time. Too many bridges!

Although we had heard rumors of the Eugene Marathon, we didn’t quite understand that all those folks would be running right past our little mall campsite on the same trail. After a bit of Indecision as to how to best manage a walk amidst weary runners approaching their 18th mile we finally decided to cross the bridge, thinking we would be far ahead of the pack. Once there, however, we discovered we were at the 24th mile and the front of the pack was already coming on strong behind us.

It was another beautiful morning, with the early fog and clouds lifting to bright sunshine, but still cool enough that the marathoners had perfect running weather. The excitement was even a bit contagious, as we walked along, staying out of the way of the runners, and listening to all the cheers of encouragement. I used to love to run, but I can’t imagine doing a marathon.

We gassed up at the Eugene Costco and headed north toward the town of Mercola and two more bridges that are within a short distance of each other. Even with coordinates and written directions, the Wendling Covered Bridge wasn’t easy to find. We were also towing the Tracker and were a bit concerned about just whether or not the road would have a turnaround if the bridge wasn’t crossable. We were lucky, and there was a wide area to park and actually turn around.

Just a few miles back toward Mercola, we found the Earnest Covered Bridge right on the main road and even drove through it. I have to say that by this time, I was losing track of where we were going and what we had seen. There may have been an easier way to do this, but I never figured it out. We just wandered and ambled around, at times backtracking a bit here and there.

Earnest Covered Bridge We ambled north toward the little town of Crawfordsville, where the Crawfordsville Covered Bridge was in full view right along the main highway. No problem, just turn left here…and park here… and, well….now how to get back to the highway? After walking across the lovely bridge and enjoying the beautiful creek and flowering trees we jumped back into the MoHo and thought, well, maybe this road goes around and comes back out in Crawfordsville. We kept going, and going, and after a few miles of very steep ups and downs on a very narrow road, we came to a small turn around area. Mo just laughed and said, “think of it as an adventure”. It was easier to do that once we were actually able to turn around!

Crawfordsville Covered Bridge Finding out next bridge was a piece of cake, and the parking was easy as well. The Weddle Covered Bridge in Sweet Home is right downtown in the city park. The bridge spanned Thomas Creek for more than 50 years, but was bypassed and neglected.

“The deteriorated bridge eventually became a safety issue, and the span was scheduled to be demolished. This action sparked protests by local covered bridge enthusiasts. As the story goes, one person chained himself to a bulldozer to prevent the bridge’s demise.

The covered bridge enthusiasts engaged Senator Mae Yih, a local legislator who became a leader in saving Oregon’s covered bridges. Through her efforts, the Oregon legislature created the Oregon Covered Bridge Program which helped fund covered bridge maintenance and rehabilitation projects throughout the state. The Weddle Bridge became the first covered bridge project to receive grants under that program.”

Weddle Bridge in Sweet Home The air was warm and the sunshine gorgeous and we lingered awhile, just appreciating the lovely site. We checked out the small Dahlenburg Covered Bridge in the park as well, built by the Sweet Home High School Building Trades class of 1989, as a class/community project. The completed 20 foot bridge allowed access from the school to Sankey Park, crossing Ames Creek.

Our original plans for the day were a bit ambitious, and with the afternoon waning Mo and I decided that we would simply go to Cascadia and then perhaps drive back to an RV park that we located in Lebanon, not too many miles back west.

On the way to Cascadia, we passed the Foster Reservoir and Green Peter Reservoir on the Santiam River. Linn County has some very nice parks with lovely campgrounds. We explored the main campground and decided that it would be a nice place to stay sometime with good access to wonderful little inlets for the kayaks. However, on this beautiful Sunday afternoon we were both just too bushed to pop those kayaks into the water and instead drove on east toward Cascadia for the last bridge of the day.

The Short Covered Bridge was worth the drive, and with its open sidewalls and the beautiful Santiam River, I added it to my list of favorites. We were a bit tired of worrying about turning around so unhooked the Tracker in Sweet Home and left the MoHo there in a parking lot. Interestingly, there were few lots where we could park easily, even at the grocery store, and the few empty lots had some very large No PARKING signs with threats of vehicles being towed away if not authorized. Finally we found a wide place in the road near the Safeway parking lot where we felt safe leaving the rig for a short time at least.

Short Bridge in Cascadia Once at the bridge, we enjoyed the open sides, the river, the beautiful roof timbers and the Howe Trusses before walking to the other side. Immediately we were greeted by a chorus of howls and barks and discovered that just across the street was a wolf breeder. Signs warned of the wolves in addition to advertizing the sale of wolf pups, but the howling made me wonder what it must be like to live next door to that guy!

On the way back to pick up the MoHo, we scrapped our plan to drive to Lebanon in favor of the lovely and very nearly empty River Bend Campground, along the Santiam River between Sweet Home and Cascadia, another Linn County Park. The price for seniors was $19. with electric and water and a dump station, the pads were the most level asphalt I think we have seen and the patio was clean, no mud anywhere cement. After parking in the mall parking lot, the quiet sound of the river below us and the wind in the trees was perfect.

Next post: To the Benton County Fairgrounds at Corvallis

Ten Covered Bridges! Cottage Grove Area and East of Eugene

One of the finest parts of camping for free at the Eugene mall is access to the beautiful Ruth Bascom Riverbank Path System along the Willamette River. We woke in the morning before daylight to the sound of footfalls beside us along the pathway. Eugene folks are by and large a fit, healthy bunch, with running, exercise, and healthy food a big part of the culture. Maybe it was just that we were on the running route, but I haven’t seen so many svelte people in a long time.

We decided to cross the bridge near the MoHo to the West Bank Path for the two mile walk to the next bridge across the river and returned two miles on the East Bank Path. Eugene was cool and misty that morning, but the leaves on the huge cottonwoods had popped and everything was that bright neon backlit green even with gloomy skies.

By the time we got on the road for our day of explorations, the sun was out most of the time with beautiful blue skies to enhance the scenery. Our first planned bridge was in the tiny town of Drain, at the furthest southern extent of what we wanted to see. There are many bridges near Myrtle Creek and farther south, but we decided that we could visit those another time from home. The easy route would have been the interstate, but who wants that?! We chose instead to return to Territorial Highway and follow the back roads all the way to Drain.

The most beautiful valley opened up in front of us, filled with farms and orchards and beautiful vineyards. On the western skyline we saw what looked like some sort of castle, and turned out to be the Kings Estate Vineyards, rivaling anything we have seen in the wine country of California. I wished that I had put on something other than comfy sweats since the place was a bit intimidating. We drove around but declined to treat the proprietors to our sweatshirty presence.

Entering the little town of Drain was a treat. So many times I have passed the “Drain” exit on the freeway and wondered why a town would be named Drain. I still have no idea why, but do know a bit more of the history and that it is a delightful little place, with everything you could need; post office, grocery store, fabric store, hardware store, gas station, and a beautiful community center, library and city park. Housing around 1,000 folks for the past 50 years or so and 500 for the previous 50 years, the town is small but surprisingly stable.

The park was beautiful, with the Pass Creek bridge dismantled from its original location and restored and relocated in the idyllic park. The setting was lovely, and quite different from what we had seen previously.

Continuing back north along Highway 99 toward Cottage Grove, we found the

Chambers Railroad Covered Bridge

the only remaining covered railroad bridge in the state of Oregon. It has been beautifully restored and is no longer in use except for pedestrians. The ironwork image of a big steam engine along the northern wall was an interesting touch. There are several interpretive signs with the history of Cottage Grove, the importance of the railroad there and stories of life in Cottage Grove when it was a town completely focused on timber.

Traveling east from Cottage Grove toward the Dorena Reservoir along Mosby Creek Road, we found another five bridges. Each unique in its own way, and each with a story.

Mosby Creek

Stewart Dorena Currin These bridges are within a few miles of each other and once again we traveled roads we might have never seen otherwise through rural parts of Oregon just off the main highways. Currin was a favorite with its red sidewalls, and the red glow from the high interior windows.

We drove back north toward Highway 58 and traveled the short distance east toward Lowell. Just south of Dexter, a few miles down a back road was the Parvin covered bridge.

Back again on the main highway, the familiar site of the Lowell covered bridge greeted us as we drove along the southern shore of Dexter reservoir. Highway 58 is one of my major driving routes from Klamath Falls to Portland, but I have never actually stopped at the Lowell bridge. This bridge is big and beautiful, with lovely windows and an especially informative and well done visitor center as part of the bridge and the parking area. The interior signboards are illuminated from within so they are easy to enjoy inside the dim light of the bridge.

From Lowell we drove north to the tiny town of Unity , and the Unity covered bridge. This little bridge was a favorite, small but perfect.

Driving back west on the back road to Jasper, we found the last bridge of the day, the Pengra covered bridge.

As I am writing this, I am feeling a bit the same that I did on the day we actually traveled this route. The bridges are all running together and I am getting confused again as to which is which! I am so glad that I have the photos to remind me of the special features of each one. Ten bridges in a day is a lot, even when they are are as closely spaced as this group. We were happy to get back to the MoHo tucked away along the river at the mall and enjoy a relaxing evening.

Our first bridges, Western Lane County

Clicking on the linked bridge names will take you to Bridgehunter.com with historical information, location maps and photos. Again, the google map and link to our tour is here. My picasaweb/google photo albums (linked at the left of this page) have many additional photos of the bridges and our trip.

After spending two truly gorgeous days in Brookings at Harris Beach we decided it was time to move on north and inland. Even though the temperatures were chilly, the sun shone for us at just the right moments to walk the beach several times a day and go see what was in bloom in Azalea Park. On Friday, however, when we packed up to leave, the rain was coming down in earnest. In fact, no matter where we looked on the weather map in Oregon, it was raining. With Lane County having the most concentrated collection of covered bridges on our map, we decided to cross the coast mountains via Highway 126 from Florence to Eugene.

There are 4 bridges in the western part of Lane County (actually there are five, but we decided that 20 miles of back road to the Fisher Bridge at the very northern border could wait for another day). Our night destination was the ever ready Valley River Mall in Eugene, no hookups and no reservations needed. Just a free space to be for two days in a good location for some bridge hunting. There was no rush to arrive so we could take our time ambling along the back roads finding the bridges.

First on our list was the Deadwood Bridge, northeast of Mapleton and Swisshome along the Suislaw River. For the first time, (but not the last on this trip), we remarked about how unlikely it would be for us to travel this back road for any other reason, especially on a rainy gray day. We have been past Mapleton many times, always turning east on 126 and never going north on Highway 36 along the river. The Suislaw was full and beautiful during this time of year, and the river valley was green and dripping wet.

We stopped in Deadwood at a closed local store to park the MoHo and unhook since we had no idea what condition the road might be in for the additional miles on Deadwood Loop to the bridge. It is always a bit of a surprise when you round the corner for the first view of any of these bridges. They seem so naturally settled into the environment around them, and so sturdy and graceful. We saw Howe Trusses for the first time, unaware that we would grow to really love the words “Howe Truss” by the end of our bridge travels. Wikipedia has a great description of the Howe Truss, a rather amazing piece of engineering that is more prevalent in the west because we still had access to huge timbers during the early part of this century when most of these bridges were built. Another striking feature of this bridge is the slanting floor, made so to ease driving around the curve where the bridge is built.

We enjoyed Deadwood and then programmed in the coordinates for the next bridge, located on Nelson Mountain Road, not too far away. Even with good maps, there is no way to really know what condition the road might be in. Often there is a sign that says “One Lane Bridge Ahead” but just as often there are no warnings of clearances and no clue if there is anyplace to turn around. For this reason, we tried to explore the back bridge roads with the Tracker whenever possible. At least we could usually turn around or drive through the bridge if needed.

bridges_058 Nelson Creek bridge was more open than Deadwood, and quite lovely in its rural pastoral setting. If you look closely at the photos of each bridge, you will notice that the portals are just a bit different. We really didn’t notice this until we had seen several bridges and were reviewing the pictures. Somewhere along the way, we read that often the portals were changed and enlarged in later restorations to make room for the larger loads traveling through the bridges.

We traveled back to Deadwood to pick up the MoHo once again, and then back to Mapleton and the main highway to Eugene. East of Mapleton, where the Suislaw River crosses the highway, is the Wildcat Bridge. You can see it from the road, but there isn’t much of a pull off, and we had no idea how narrow the road was that curved back under the highway bridge down to the river.

Mo decided to be safe and parked the MoHo off the road while I walked down to the bridge for photos. It was a good plan! The road is short, steep, and narrow, and the underpass of the highway is very low, with no place to turn around at the bridge. Once again, I found an A. L Striker bridge, the superintendent of bridge building in Lane County during this time period. As well, there was another subtle difference in the portal shape, as this bridge was used for years as a passage for logging trucks over the river.

Just a bit west of Eugene was another spot on the map to explore. The Coyote Creek covered bridge is south of Veneta, location of the infamous Oregon Country Fair. The road to Coyote Creek is called Territorial Highway, a name that triggered all sorts of wondering as to its origin. Along the way were some lovely pastoral farms and forests and again, the road leading to the bridge was short and narrow and steeply curved. Once again we parked up on the main road and unhooked the Tracker to go find the bridge and once again it was a good idea.

The Coyote Creek bridge was in good repair, with some new siding and some old, and again, there was a subtle difference in the portal openings and in the slant of the sidewalls over the creek. At some bridges there are signs with an explanation of the history and renovations and at others there isn’t even a nameplate.

By the time we reached the mall it was early evening and we were ready to kick back and relax with a glass of wine and some supper. Even before we parked, the security person met us with the paper to fill out for our free two night stay and directions to park in a different area this time since the spring games were coming up the next day and shuttles would be plying the parking lot to the University of Oregon.

Finding Covered Bridges in Oregon

The map below of the bridges we have visited is available publicly on Google Maps titled “Covered Bridge RV Trip May 2012” (thanks to Rick for helping me figure out how to find the right html link for this map)

I have spent the last few days trying to figure out just how to write about this rather amazing trip. The combination of navigation, location, photographing, researching, and finally enjoying the bridges is a bit daunting to write about. I decided that first I would just drop in the map I made on Google, then give a truly great website link, and later go into more detail. Future posts will be organized by county and will have my own thoughts and some of the photos (you know of course that I took way to many!)

We started with the ODOT website for the covered bridges and downloaded the PDF with coordinates and directions to each bridge. Mo painstakingly drafted the approximate location of each bridge on a paper map and I used that to try to navigate with the Garmin, Google on the phone, and my trusty Gazateer for Oregon.

There are many websites for covered bridges but the most amazing resource that I found is called “Bridgehunter”, an extremely thorough database of bridges throughout the country. Read the “about” section to learn about how and why this website was started and how it is maintained.

In the next few days, as I write about the bridges and our wanderings, I’ll link to Bridgehunter for each one, and if you choose you can read about the history of the bridge, see many photos both current and historic, (in addition to mine of course), see a google map to the individual bridge and even a google street view if one is available.

Wandering

My soul is filled up with green. We have been traveling through long narrow valleys filled with luscious spring greens, reminiscent of the hills of the Carolinas where my family heritage resides. Never lived there, but I remember feeling at home and completely familiar when we drove through the little town of Cherokee in North Carolina, among the hardwoods and rhododendrons. These hidden Oregon valleys are much like that. I can imagine how wonderful it felt to the pioneers crossing the Oregon Trail when they at last reach the verdant, green paradise called Oregon. Familiar, welcoming and nurturing after all those miles crossing prairies and deserts, day after day of brown and tan and gray.

Oregon is many things, but right now, west of the Cascades, it is green, thick, lush, vibrant, neon, chartreuse, every possible shade of green you could imagine and more. The green somehow fills me up, makes my insides vibrate and tingle, makes something inside me expand. Mo and I have spent the last few days wandering slowly through a part of Oregon that we usually pass by at 65 miles per hour on the interstate.

The Willamette Valley is large, and extends from Eugene to Portland, bisected very nearly through the middle by Interstate 5. I can’t count the times I have driven this road, usually to get from one end of Oregon to the other, as quickly as possible.

I was often heading south from Northern Idaho, where I lived for more than 30 years, traveling for the holidays to the youngest daughter in Medford, then later in Corvallis. Then later again traveling north when that same daughter lived in Albany and I was in Klamath Falls, and north again to spend time with the oldest daughter settled in Portland. Always moving as quickly as possible, noticing the green and the blue skies in the spring and the brown and smoky skies of fall, but never really seeing it. Not like I have seen it this week.

Searching for covered bridges is more about the back road journeys than it is about the bridges, although after seeing so many, I find myself feeling great affection for them. At first we thought they all looked pretty much the same, but in actuality there are subtle nuances and each bridge has it’s own personality, its own character. Some are tucked away in little unknown canyons crossing small streams, others on big rivers like the Suislaw in a valley we never knew about before this trip.

There will be more to write about the journey, the places we found, the roads we traveled, the individual bridges, but that will come later, this is just as Erin says, “a teaser”. At the moment, I am still just soaking up the green. Enjoying the rain and the brilliant sunshine between the rains, the wild clouds moving across the skies, and green, always green, everywhere green.