History comes back to life in the Columbia River Gorge
COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE - The restoration of a historic Columbia River Gorge tunnel is complete and over the weekend a ribbon cutting ceremony was held to officially open the treasure to the public.
Originally constructed in 1914, the Oneonta Tunnel and adjacent Oneonta Bridge were part of the original alignment of the Historic Columbia River Highway. But in 1948, the narrow tunnel was abandoned and later filled with debris for safety reasons.
"It was filled in with rubble and it just kind of melted into the landscape for the next 60 years," said Oregon Department of Transportation Robert Hadlow when we interviewed him back in February while construction was in full swing.
In June of 2006, ODOT and the Western Federal Lands Highway Division of the Federal Highway Administration began construction to reopen and restore the tunnel. Historians and engineers were careful to put the piece of history back together exactly as it was built a century ago, a task made more challenging by the fact that there were no plans.
Now, the tunnel is complete and bicyclists and pedestrians are welcome to enjoy it as they explore the scenery along the Historic Columbia River Highway. Vehicles are not allowed but there is adjacent parking.
The project is part of a larger goal of reconnecting abandoned segments of the Historic Columbia River Highway for recreational use.
Directions
- The tunnel is located 35 miles east of Portland.
- Take Interstate 84 east.
- Get off at exit 35 (the Ainsworth State Park exit)
- Follow the Historic Columbia River Highway signs for about a mile to the site (you can't miss it)
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Shannon L. Cheesman is a Portland-area Web Producer/Reporter who specializes in the outdoors. She writes and reports for Fisher Interactive Network, which consists of 13 local news/information Web sites in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and California.