Gribblenation

Back in April 2017 I took a detour down the pre-1942 alignment of California State Route 180 on Dunlap Road in far east Fresno County in the Sierra Nevada Range. Dunlap Road is 13 miles long and connects from modern CA 245 west to CA 180.  At some point between 1940 and 1942 SSR 180 was moved to modern alignment CA 180 takes on the Kings Canyon Highway and SSR 65 was extended north to where the modern northern terminus of CA 245 is now.  The routing for SSR 180 on Dunlap Road and the eventual changes I described can be seen on these maps: 1935 Fresno County Road Map 1938 State Highway Map 1940 State Highway Map 1942 State Highway Map CA 180 would have continued westbound to the right on Dunlap Road in the below picture while CA 65 would have begun on the left. Dunlap Road is significantly more curvy than the modern Kings Canyon Highway to the north which CA 180 now runs on.  There is some evidence of former state maintenance with culverts that had design origins in

The roads around Pittsburgh International Airport have a lot of history and intrigue.  The growth of the airport and resulting land acquisitions have changed the routing of many roads in Western Allegheny County.  As the airport grew and traffic around the airport increased, the need for new highways would also change the landscape.  Of course, the fact that this is Pittsburgh means there were also plans for roads that never came to be.  Two of these never built highway plans, the Beaver Valley Expressway (BVE) extension and the full-speed connection to the Southern Expressway at Flaugherty Run Road have traces - specifically ghost ramps - of highways that never came to be. Beaver Valley Expressway Extension: Pavement stubs for a never-built extension of the Beaver Valley Expressway that would have bypassed the Greater Pittsburgh International Airport terminal.  (Adam Prince - October 1998) For nearly three decades, this unused piece of roadway along the southern end of Beave

Back in late April I had a chance to make it out to the Kettleman Hills to clinch California State Route 269. CA 269 is a 30 mile state highway which has a south terminus at CA 33 in Avenal which a rural community in Kings County.    The first photo is from CA 33 north approaching CA 269 and second is the south terminus of CA 269. CA 269 is signed on Skyline Boulevard and quickly ascends into the Kettleman Hills which is a small mountain range east of the Diablos.  Huron is 16 miles to the north of Avenal in San Joaquin Valley. CA 269 is signed as a connecting route to I-5. Skyline Boulevard is essentially a straight shot over the Kettleman Hills.  There is oil derricks on both sides of the highway along with a decent overlook of the Diablos if you're willing to look for one. The descent northward towards San Joaquin Valley can really nice looking a clear day.  Weird to think that the endless farm fields used to essentially an inland sea an