Wednesday, June 23, 2010

STB's Big Adventure Part Four






Pretty, Huh?















The other side of the the tunnel the elevation drops like a rock into Cumberland. We cruised in darn near effortlessly - easy pedaling at 15-17 mph on a trail that was nearly as smooth as glass.










Lots of old railroad bridges along the way. This one was unique in that it was constructed of iron rather than steel.
If you click on the photo to make it larger, you can see some of the ornate detail work on the top. I like how in the old days structural elements like these corner braces always were more than just functional. With castings like these, it didn't really cost anymore to make them look nice. I'm just glad they did.







This one was taken from the inside of the Big Savage tunnel while I was riding through it (which partly explains why it's a little shaky). This one had lights inside so you could see where you were you going. 3300' long. This was quite the project at the time. The one on the C&O Canal that is almost as long is brick lined. 6 million bricks! Plus it was dug like if you and I were going to do one in the back yard. Picks, shovels and black powder. No thanks. I'll pass on that job.

2 comments:

Grumpyunk said...

Looks like you had a hell of a good ride, Bro.
That's some pretty country up that way.

The word verification is - firdip. There's a joke in there somewhere but I just can't quite get at it this morning!

Shop Teacher Bob said...

Ride was good - I like the adventure of getting out and seeing new things. There's always just enough work and struggle to make it worthwhile but you're never too far from civilization.

As for firdip, sometimes just knowing it's there is enough.