October, 2018 Day 4, Bridges and Tunnels

Day 4 Monday, October 15, 2018         

     After a surprisingly good breakfast at the Comfort Inn with plenty of variety, it was time to hit the road.  The sunrise was just a hint of color on the horizon when I pulled out.  An easy ten minutes north on I-26 and it became Hwy 23 at the Virginia state line

      A few miles across the state line, I pulled off to put away the Tennessee map and get out the Virginia map.  The sunrise wasn’t showing me much, but the bands of clouds offered promise.  I drove on. 

      Suddenly, I looked in the rear view mirror and saw it.   Near the horizon, the bands of clouds were a blazing bright orange.  Higher up, they faded into yellow.  Yeah. It was one of “those” sunrises.  The kind where you just want to pull of, get out of the car and just take it in.  But, there was nowhere to pull off.  Hwy 23 was way too busy to just pull over.  By the time I found a pullout, it was all but over.   

       In the research for this trip, I came across a blog posting about the swinging bridges of Scott County, Virginia.  Some were listed as hard to find, others were a little far off my route.  One included the directions, “turn left on.”  As far as I could see on Google Maps, that road only went right from the highway, and he had been clear his directions were south to north.

        The most promising was six miles off the highway on Anglers Way.  I found the turnoff and drove west.  I took it as a good sign that this barely two lane road paralleled the river.  Just beyond the six mile mark, there it was. 

        I’ve walked across plenty of these over the years.  Some seemed sturdy, others had me questioning my sanity.  This one came with the usual warnings.

      The bridge decking swayed a little underfoot, and it you stepped too hard. You could see it rippling in front of you.  The view from the bridge.

      Seen along Anglers Way...

      From time to time on these drives, I come across something special.  Just north of Anglers Way sits a pullout and a viewpoint.  That railroad bridge was built by the Carolina, Clinchfield and Ohio Railway in 1908.  It’s still in use today.  There’s also a lower bridge that you can’t see due to the trees.  These were built to get coal east to market.

      Knowing I could probably get closer, I backtracked and found a dirt road leading back towards the bridges.  Can’t beat this!

      Over the years I’ve been quite lucky when it comes to being at the right place at the right time to catch a train rolling by.  Not so much today.  All I saw was this railroad inspection vehicle drive along the tracks. 

      A few miles north on Hwy 23 and I saw the sign for Clinch River Road.  Perhaps a half mile up the road was my second swinging bridge of the day.  This one rippled a little heartier than the first.  But yeah, worth it.  

      Back on Hwy 23, I didn’t have far to go to my next stop, Natural Tunnel State Park.  Many of you have seen natural bridges and arches.  But, imagine if you can an eight hundred and fifty foot tunnel created over time by flowing water. 

     The South Atlantic and Ohio bought the land in 1893.  A year later, the first train passed through the tunnel.  Norfolk Southern and CSX still run trains through the it.  But, now they only ship coal.  There used to be ten to fifteen trains a day, but now it’s one every couple of days.  The demand for coal has dropped and some mines are shutting down.  I still would have loved to see one coming through.

     I easily found the park.  After paying my $4 day use fee, I drove in and parked.  You can either hike down the .3 mile trail to the tunnel, or take the chair lift.  Considering the trail is mostly stairs, I can see why people would opt for the lift.  Me, I walked.

     The view from below.

      Between the harsh light and the darkness of the tunnel, it was difficult to shoot.  This is a half second exposure, handheld...
   

     With plenty of time on my hands, I also chose a half mile trail up to an overlook of the gorge. Not a bad view at all.

      I stopped for gas in Deffield.  I only mention it because there’s a really big picture on the wall inside the convenience store.  It’s of a place called the Devil's Bathtub.
Oddly enough, this wasn't the last one of those on this trip.  While it certainly looked inviting. according too the map the trailhead was thirty miles out of my way.  When I was able to do a search for the trail, I found out it’s either seven miles each way, or you can take the shorter trail that includes thirteen stream crossings. 

     Eventually, the road brought me to the town of Appalachia, Virginia and Hwy 160.  This was another stretch of tight, serpentine twists to the Kentucky state line.  But, I had no choice.  It’s the only way to Black Mountain.

     Eventually, you reach the top of the long climb.  Facing the other direction is the Welcome to Virginia sign.  Just beyond sits the Welcome to Kentucky sign.  In between is a dirt road that heads back into the woods.  It used to be paved.  The operative word being “used.”  There are short stretches of pavement, sections of pavement chunks and mostly just dirt and rocks.  I would have felt uncomfortable driving a standard sized sedan along this road.  My CR-V was definitely getting a workout. 

     To even drive this road, I needed to sign a waiver, complete with two witnesses.  I needed to send one to the owner’s attorney’s office and have the second copy on my person throughout the adventure.

       Black Mountain is owned by the Penn Virginia Resources Mining Company.  At 4,145 feet it’s also the highest point in Kentucky. The only access is the mile and a half road through the company’s property.  Thus the waiver.  You can either take your chances on the condition of the road, or leave your car at the pullout along Hwy 160 and walk to the peak. 

       At the mile and a half point, you come to square building with a very large dome on top.  It’s surrounded by fences and Keep Out signs.  This facility is used by the FAA as a radar site.  The condition of the road degrades from that point.  That’s where I ditched the car and just walked. 

       It was no surprise the top of the mountain was covered with cell towers. 

 

    Around back sits a historic market and a large rock.  On the rock is the official marker. 

     And for those of you scoring at home, this makes nineteen state high points. 

     Eventually, Hwy 160 would get back to the bottom of the mountain.  But first, a random traffic light.  Around the corner, the edge of the outer lane has been eroded away.

   That’s where you’ll find the town of Lynch, Kentucky.  The first thing you see as you drive into town is the old high school.  It’s long been empty and every window seemed broken.  There were even scorch marks from an old fire.  Further into town it’s quite obvious, this is a town who’s time had past. 

     The U.S. Coal and Coke Company(a division of US Steel) created the town in 1917 for the workers in the coal mines.  They named it after Thomas Lynch, the owner.  In the 1940's, as many as 10,000 people lived and worked here. It had become the world’s largest company town.

     The town started to decline as less labor intensive mining methods were developed.  The town all but died when the mine finally closed.  You can read a nice article from the Daily Mail from last year, marking one hundred years since the town’s founding.  

     There are regular tours through the mines.  Just not on Mondays.  The town’s one coffee/sandwich shop is also closed on Mondays.  So, I just took my camera and walked around.  I found the solar panels in a coal mining town interesting.

     Alongside the road sits this sculpture of a black bear, textured to make it look as if he had been made out of coal.  It’s part of the Black Bear Mania Project. This one was done by local artist Eddie McIlquham.

    I saw a second one in the next town up, Benham.

    And s third in Cumberland.  The hand prints are from the elementary school in town.

     It was mid-afternoon and I was still looking for some lunch.  There was every chain of fast foot available as well as a place called Dairy Hut.  Eventually, I came across Charlotte’s Hoagie Shop.  Like everything else it seemed, it’s closed on Monday.  However, I did get to meet Charlotte.  She explained the truck comes on Monday, and they take the day to restock.  No worries, there would be other places up the road.

      With nothing else on tap for the day, I picked up Hwy 119 westward to the town of Harlan and the Mount Aire Motel, my home for the night. On the drive, I found NPR and a weather report, a one hundred percent chance of rain later. 

   Knowing there had to be a place for a bite in downtown, I ditched the car and started walking.  A few blocks up, I came across Portal Family Pizza.  It was 3P and the place was packed, with more people waiting.  While this is generally a good sign, I didn’t feel like waiting. 

     Trying to get out of downtown was interesting.  The schools had just let out and the this streets were clogged with buses.  I was in no hurry and just waited it out.

      The motel had a definite log cabin motif.  The room was comfortable, but nothing special. 

    I started looking for places to eat nearby.  The only thing within walking distance that wasn’t a national chain was a place called Rax Restaurant.  It was sandwiches and a large salad bar.  It was just what I needed.

     Remember that promised rain?  Right around 6P it started to splatter, then came down in earnest.  The good thing, after the days drive, my car needed the bath. 

Coming Up,
Unique to Kentucky and Zambia, nowhere else.