Skip to main content

Wildcat Creek Covered Bridge - Lane County, Oregon

Image
By

 


Built in 1925, the Wildcat Creek Covered Bridge crosses the Wildcat Creek just as it meets the larger Siuslaw River in Lane County, Oregon. The bridge is also known as the Austa Bridge, after the nearby community of Austa located near OR 126 between Mapleton and Walton. The bridge was located along the old Stagecoach Road, which was the original route from Eugene to Florence on the Oregon Coast. Stagecoach Road hugs the hills along the Siuslaw River until it drops down to the narrow plain at the town of Swisshome. During the 1930s, both the road and the covered bridge were bypassed by the Linslaw Tunnel and the Mapleton Bridge when modern OR 126 was built. As a result, the Wildcat Creek Covered Bridge has a quiet existence just off of OR 126, making it ripe for passive exploration.

The Wildcat Creek Covered Bridge is 161 feet long, including approaches, with a main span of 75 feet. The bridge features a Howe single truss design, as the bridge does not have the wooden diagonal counters that you would find on a traditional Howe Truss covered bridge. The covered bridge features a window, but only facing the confluence of the Wildcat Creek and the Siuslaw River. This does allow for some nice views from both the bridge and also the shores of the river, as there is a nearby boat ramp providing Siuslaw River access.

I made a quick stopover to the Wildcat Creek Bridge as I was making my way down OR 126 west of Eugene. The access road to the covered bridge comes quickly from the main road as I had found. But once I had arrived at the bridge, I found it was easy to find parking and walk around. Overall, I found this was a nice stop to break up the driving along OR 126 between Eugene and the Oregon Coast.



Entering the covered bridge from the south.

The Wildcat Creek Covered Bridge crossing its namesake, the Wildcat Creek. From what I can tell, the Wildcat Creek follows OR 126 past Walton and towards Penn before veering away from the highway to the southeast.

North portal of the covered bridge.

Inside the covered bridge.

Siuslaw River.

There is also a nearby railroad bridge that crosses the Siuslaw River near the Wildcat Creek Bridge. The bridge for OR 126 is just south of the railroad bridge.


How to Get There:



Sources and Links:
Eugene Cascades and Coast - Wildcat Creek Covered Bridge
Travel Oregon - Wildcat Creek Bridge
Bridgehunter.com - Wildcat Covered Bridge 37-20-04
Labels:
Location: Wildcat Creek (Austa) Bridge, Siuslaw Rd, Walton, OR 97490, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2018 Mojave Road Trip Part 2; The deadly desert highway (California State Route 127 and Nevada State Route 373)

By
After leaving Barstow via Old Highway 58 my next destination was in Death Valley.  To access Death Valley from rural San Bernardino County required a trek on north on Interstate 15 to California State Route 127 which becomes Nevada State Route 373 at the state line. Along I-15 I encountered the road sign oddity that is Zzyzx Road about eight miles south of Baker.   Zzyzx Road is a four mile road that used to go to the Zzyzx Mineral Springs and Health Spa.   The spa was founded in the 1940s and the owner made up the name "Zzyzx" to claim it was the last word in the English Language.  The spa has been shut down since the 1970s and is now part of a Desert Studies Center for California State University. The southern terminus of CA 127 in Baker is located at I-15 exit 246.  CA 127 is a 91 mile north/south highway which runs to the Nevada State Line in Inyo County.  CA 127 is called Death Valley Road from I-15 northward.  South of CA 127 ...
4 comments
Read more

Finding the Pre-Emption Road of New York State

By
  The Pre-Emption Road (or rather a series of roads named Pre-Emption Road) follows a survey line called the Pre-Emption Line, drawn in the early days of the United States. The story begins with Massachusetts and New York having competing land claims to modern day Western New York State that have their roots in colonial charters granted by the British. After the Revolutionary War ended, this land became the frontier of the nation and its settlement became a priority for the new American government. During this era, there were a lot of competing land claims that needed to be settled. It was no different with the land claims between New York State and Massachusetts. On November 30, 1786, Massachusetts and New York sent representatives to Hartford, Connecticut to resolve their competing land claims. In less than three weeks, the representatives had reached a compromise. Massachusetts would receive pre-emption rights, meaning the right to sell the land after the Indian title ...
Post a Comment
Read more

What's In a Name?: When the Roads Really Do Tell a Story

By
  Our tagline on the Gribblenation blog is "because every road tells a story". Some roads tell different stories than others. Along our travels, we may see historic markers that tell us a little story about the roads we travel or the places we pass by. Some historic markers are more general, as to telling us who lived where or what old trail traversed between two towns. During my travels across New York State and other states or provinces, I pass by many historic markers, some with interesting or amusing references to roads. I wanted to highlight a few of the markers I've seen along my travels around the Empire State and help tell their stories. Those stories may be as specific as explaining the tales of a tree that was used to help measure a distance of eight miles from Bath to Avoca in Steuben County, as referenced on the Eight Mile Tree historical marker above. They may also help point the way along historical roads first used centuries ago, or may help tell a local l...
Post a Comment
Read more