Gribblenation

  Did you know that there is a troll that lives underneath the northern abutment of the Aurora Bridge in Seattle, Washington? In the Fremont neighborhood of Seattle, the Fremont Troll looms large underneath the Aurora Bridge, at the crossroads of North 36th Street, and of course, Troll Avenue. Ever since the Aurora Bridge was built in 1932 for traffic crossing the Lake Washington Ship Canal following what was then part of US 99 (now WA 99), there have been reports of troll sightings underneath the bridge. Thanks to an art installation that was built in 1990, we can now say for certain that a particular troll lives under the north end of the Aurora Bridge. Eager to trade in shady activity for a new passion of city beautification, in 1989, the City of Seattle asked the Fremont Arts Council to launch an art competition to rehabilitate the area under the Aurora Bridge. The area under the bridge had become a local dumping ground as well as a haven for derelict activities such ...

  Located in New Milford, Connecticut, Lovers Leap State Park is a 160 acre state park. The name Lovers Leap is based on a legend that involves starcrossed lovers; an unidentified white man and Lillinoah, a Native American princess who was the daughter of Pootatuck Indian Chief Waramaug, that chose to leap to their deaths. The park has a number of walking paths and are split into three sections. There are the Old Factory Trails, the Waramaug Loop, and the Hurd Estate Trails found around the park. Each section of the park has their own sights to see, including a castle, ruins and overlooks of Lake Lilinonah.  The historic iron bridge over the Housatonic River is frequently the main attraction. The Falls Bridge, which is an iron bridge built by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company of East Berlin, Connecticut, is a 173 foot lenticular truss bridge over the Housatonic River and was built in 1895. It is one of only a handful of iron truss bridges remaining in Connecticut. A similar ...

Is a possible extension of the I-77 Express Toll Lanes in Charlotte in the works? Could more toll lanes be on the way for commuters in Charlotte?  It's certainly possible.   The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) recently received a bid from a yet-to-be-named company proposing to extend the I-77 toll lanes southwards.  This extension would run from where the toll lanes currently end at the Brookshire Freeway (NC 16/US 277) to the South Carolina State Line. There are not a lot of details about the proposal - from the possible cost, design, and who submitted the proposal.  NCDOT received the proposal unsolicited, and DOT officials shared general details during a meeting of the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization (CRTPO) this past Wednesday. The plan would be a public-private partnership, but beyond that, not much more is known.  The 14-member CRTPO board voted 8 to 6 in favor of studying the proposal and later recommendati...

California State Route 1 in western San Mateo County traverses the Montara Mountain spur of the Santa Cruz Mountains.  In modern times California State Route 1 passes through Montara Mountain via the Tom Lantos Tunnels and the highway is traditionally associated with Devils Slide.  Although Devils Slide carries an infamous legacy due it being prone landslides it pales in comparison to the alignment California State Route 1 carried prior to November 1937 over Old Pedro Mountain Road.   Old Pedro Mountain Road opened to traffic in 1915 and is considered one of the first major asphalted highways in California.  Old Pedro Mountain Road clambers over a grade from Montara towards Pacifica via the 922-foot-high Saddle Pass.  Pictured above an overlook of Old Pedro Mountain Road facing southward towards Montara as it appears today.  Pictured below it the same view during June 1937 when it was part of the original alignment of California State Route 1.  To...