Cave Rock Tunnel; US Route 50 Lake Tahoe

Back in 2016 I visited the Cave Rock Tunnel on US Route 50 on the eastern shore of Lake Tahoe in Douglas County, Nevada.

The Cave Rock Tunnel is a dual-bore tunnel through a rock formation of the same name. The Cave Rock Tunnel was intended as a replacement of the original alignment of US 50 which was routed on the South Branch of the Lincoln Highway. Prior to the Cave Rock Tunnel being built traffic had to use a one-lane swing bridge located on the edge of Cave Rock which dated back to 1863. Ruins of the bridge abutment are still present on the western section of Cave Rock overlooking Lake Tahoe.

The 1931 Cave Rock Tunnel bore is 157 feet in length and presently serves US 50 West traffic. The eastbound Cave Rock Tunnel much longer at 410 feet in length and was completed in 1957. When I arrived at Cave Rock in 2016 the 1931 bore was under going a seismic retrofit which included a concrete liner and a rock shed on the end of the tunnel. In the photo below US 50 traffic is shown two-way via the 1957 Cave Rock bore.

The link below shows a photo of the original Cave Rock alignment of US 50 next to the 1931 bore.

http://www.cityconcierge.com/lake-tahoe/activities/cave-rock.asp

I was provided with a link by NE2 on AAroads for the book; Cave Rock: Climbers, Courts, and a Washoe Indian Scared Place. On page 40 a picture of the Cave Rock Bridge can be seen:

https://books.google.com/books?id=8ZmpE-AymmsC&pg=PA48-IA1&hl=en#v=onepage&q&f=false

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Michael J. Semas on Chisholm Ferry and Bridge

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