Technobarbarian <technobarbarian@gmail.com> wrote:

I was a very lucky youngster. I was my mother's parents first grandchild. So I was the first grandchild who was mature enough to
travel with my grandparents without being a chore. My grandfather loved
to travel and he loved engineering marvels. My mom explained it to me.
If I was easy to travel with I could go on further adventures. I didn't
need any further convincing. I was a perfect little gentleman. I got to
see a lot of Oregon and the Southwest that way.

One of the many scenic wonders I got to see was the Historic
Columbia highway back when most or all of it was still open automobiles.
I have been through the original Mitchell Point tunnel that is being replaced.

"Historic Columbia Gorge highway is one step nearer completion, with world-class aspirations"

"?The National Scenic Area Act, which was signed by President Reagan in
1986, has a requirement for the Oregon Department of Transportation to restore and reconnect the segments of what they call the old Columbia
Highway as a recreation facility,? Lingley said. ?The act itself came
with, I think it was $2 million at the very beginning to start that
work.?

While there was money, there was little support among politicians for rebuilding a crumbling old highway. One problem: there just wasn?t room
for it. In places along the gorge, the basalt cliffs butt up so close to
the river that there?s barely space for the existing Union Pacific
railway and I-84.

An aerial view of Mitchell Point Tunnel shows how there's very little
space between the river, the railway and I-84.

So ODOT worked first on easier stretches of the historic highway, far
from the interstate. In 2000, it opened the Mosier Twin Tunnels between
Hood River and Mosier.

Brenna Campbell runs the Mosier Market and said the route proved
surprisingly popular.

?There are multiple outfitters in Hood River where you can rent an e-
bike for the day. So (tourists) will ride over here to Mosier,? she
said."

https://www.opb.org/article/2024/01/11/columbia-river-gorge-historic- scenic-highway-oregon-interstate/

TB

Yawn.

--
Everyone has the right to be stupid but liberals tend to abuse that right.

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