Skip to main content

Paper Highways; modern California State Route 169 the unfinished California State Route 96

By

In this edition of Paper Highways we look at the history of the incomplete California State Route 169 and it's origins as part of California State Route 96.

 

Present CA 169 is a 24 mile State Highway which begins at US 101 near Klamath in Del Norte County and ends at CA 96 in Weitchpec of Humboldt County.  CA 169 has a 18 mile gap of unconstructed highway along the Klamath River and Yurok Reservation.


 Part 1; The History California State Route 169

The present route of CA 169 was added to State Highway System during the 1919 Third State Highway Bond Act according to CAhighways.org as Legislative Route 46.  LRN 46 was plotted as a highway from Legislative Route 3 (future US 99) at the Klamath River Bridge west to Legislative Route 1 (future US 101 at the Klamath River.  LRN 46 appears on the 1920 Division of Highways Map plotted as projected by it's 1919 Third State Highway Bond Act Definition.



The 1922 Division of Highways Map shows LRN 46 under the process of being graded immediately west of LRN 3.


The 1924 Division of Highways Map shows LRN 46 under construction from Happy Camp through Klamath National Forest to Somesbar.


LRN 46 is shown as a functional highway from LRN 3/US 99 west to Weitchpec on the 1930 Division of Highways Map.  LRN 46 northwest to LRN 1/US 101 is shown to be a planned highway along the Klamath River.  Bald Hills Road is shown as a functional connecting local road from LRN 46 in Weitchpec west to LRN 1/US 101.


In the August 1934 California Highways & Public Works Guide the Sign State Routes were announced.  CA 96 was announced to be aligned completely over the unfinished LRN 46 from US 101 near Klamath east to US 99 near Yreka via the Klamath River (hence the name; Klamath River Highway).  The map provided in the CHPW guide shows CA 96 as it was originally intended to be aligned entirely over LRN 46.



CA 96 as originally planned on LRN 46 appears on the 1935 Goshua Map of California.


The 1935 Division of Highways Map of Del Norte County shows CA 96/LRN 46 completed from US 101/LRN 1 east from Klamath to Klamath Glen.


The 1935 Division of Highways Map of Humboldt County shows CA 96/LRN 46 completed west of Weitchpec to Martins Ferry.  Bald Hills Road is shown to be the locale connecting road west to US 101/LRN 1 near Orick.  It is unclear if CA 96 was ever signed over Bald Hills Road to US 101.


CA 96 is shown to be realigned off of LRN 46 south of Weitchpec via LRN 84 to US 299 at Willow Creek.  LRN 84 was added to the State Highway System during 1933 according to CAhighways.org.  It was likely CA 96 was realigned via easier grades of LRN 84 since it followed the Trinity River to US 299.  The planned route of LRN 46 west of Weitchpec followed a far more flood prone Klamath River to US 101.   The new alignment of CA 96 on LRN 84 can be seen on the 1938 Division of Highways State Map.


Not much happened with LRN 46 between Weitchpec west to Klamath until the 1950s.  The January/February 1956 California Highways & Public Works guide discusses floods from December 1955 on the Klamath River which damaged LRN 46 between Weitchpec and Martins Ferry.  The floods of December 1955 affected almost all the major highways of Northwestern California and were a driver towards infrastructure improvements. 


The September/October 1959 California Highways & Public Works Guide discusses Humboldt County applying for State aid for 43 new bridges.  One of the new bridges cited was just off of LRN 46 at Martins Ferry.   The new Martins Ferry Bridge is featured along with several other structures.  The Martins Ferry Bridge project reconnected Bald Hills Road to LRN 46 but also seems to have been the root of construction west towards Klamath. 


The 1960 Division of Highways Map shows LRN 46 extended west along the Klamath River to the Yurok Reservation.  The reminder of unbuilt LRN 46 along the Klamath River is shown not to have a determined routing.  This is as far as LRN 46 would ever come towards being completed.


During the 1964 State Highway Renumbering LRN 46 from Weitchpec west to Klamath was reassigned as CA 169.  CA 169 can be first seen on the 1964 Division of Highways Map.


The driving force behind why CA 169 along the Klamath River was never completed seems to be the massive floods of December 1964 in Northwest California.  The floods of December 1964 are referenced heavily in an article about US 101/US 199 on the Redwood Highway in the March/April 1965 California Highways & Public Works Guide.  According to CAhighways.org the status of completing CA 169 has largely remained in limbo since 1964.  The only major activity regarding CA 169 as of late was a feasibility study regarding finishing the highway gap which was conducted during 2002.


Part 2; A Tour of the West Segment of CA 169

Our virtual tour of CA 169 begins from US 101 southbound at Old Klamath.  CA 169 eastbound begins from US 101 southbound Exit 769.




 
 
The North segment of CA 169 is aligned on Klamath Glen Road.  As CA 169 eastbound passes under US 101 the guide signage uses Klamath Glen as a control city.  Klamath Glen is signed as 3 miles east on CA 169 from US 101.  




 
At Post Mile DN R0.175 CA 169 east passes by the Klamath Tour Through Tree.  The Tour Through Tree is a fairly recent tunnel tree creation having only been carved in May of 1976. 




 
CA 169 eastbound follows the east bank of the Klamath River.  At Post Mile DN 2.534 CA 169 eastbound intersects Terwer Valley Road.
 









 
The West segment of CA 169 terminates at Klamath Glen near Terwer Rifle Road at Post Mile DN 3.521.







Part 3; A Virtual Tour of the East Segment of CA 169

The virtual tour of the East Segment of CA 169 begins from CA 96 east in Weitchpec at the Klamath River.  Interestingly Martins Ferry is shown as a Control City 5 miles west on CA 169 but Orick by way of Bald Hills Road is also displayed at 39 miles west. 




CA 169 westbound quickly drops to a one-lane State Highway.  The East Segment of CA 169 is one of the few remaining State Highways in California which has one-lane segments.


CA 169 west has an interesting Control City..."End of Road" is a place I've never heard of.  Notably Wauteck Village is signed as 20 miles west on CA 169. 


At Post Mile HUM 29.955 CA 169 west approaches the Martins Ferry Bridge.  End of the Road is signed as 18 miles away on CA 169 west.



CA 169 west of the Martins Ferry Bridge continues as a one-lane State Highway along the east bank of Klamath River.


At Post Mile HUM 28.500 CA 169 west crosses Rube Ranch Creek.


CA 169 west briefly expands to two lanes and crosses Coon Creek at Post Mile HUM 25.800.


CA 169 reduces back down to a single lane upon crossing Coon Creek.


At Post Mile HUM 24.66 CA 169 west crosses Mawah Creek.


CA 169 westbound does have some scenic vistas of the Klamath River.


At Post Mile HUM 23.823 CA 169 crosses Cappell Creek.


At Post Mile HUM 14.968 CA 169 westbound enters the community of Surgone.


Surgone is one of the few places on CA 169 westbound that has a clear tree line.


CA 169 enters Pecwan and crosses Pecwan Creek at Post Mile HUM 14.44.


Approaching Johnsons (AKA Wauteck Village) traffic is advised "End of Road" lies 1,500 feet ahead.


The East Segment of CA 169 ends at Johnsons Road at Post Mile HUM 13.2.



Labels:

Comments

Anonymous said…
Would be appropriate to complete this road. The Tribe would benefit from a direct route connecting the tribe...simple as that.
2:22 PM
Anonymous said…
Why not let the tribe complete the road and collect a toll since it's on their land. Same logic could apply to the G-O road.
3:30 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bleriot Ferry - Alberta

By
  Alberta operates six ferries scattered throughout the province. Roughly twenty to twenty-five kilometers up the Red Deer River from the town of Drumheller is one of the most scenic ferry crossings in all of Wild Rose Country, the Bleriot Ferry. Using the North Dinosaur Trail (Alberta Highway 838, or AB 838), the Bleriot Ferry provides a scenic river cruise of sorts in the Canadian Badlands. The Bleriot Ferry started operating in 1913 as the Munson Ferry when a few bridges crossed the Red Deer River. The ferry was started by Andre Bleriot, the brother of famed early aviator Louis Bleriot, who became famous for being the first person to fly over the English Channel. At the time, the Alberta provincial government commissioned local residents to run the ferries. There were several ferries along the Red Deer River, and not only did they serve as vital transportation links, but they also served as local social hubs, since everyone had to take the ferries to go places. Over time, as the...
Post a Comment
Read more

Interstate 40's Tumultuous Ride Through the Pigeon River Gorge

By
In the nearly 60 years Interstate 40 has been open to traffic through the Pigeon River Gorge in the mountains of Western North Carolina, it has been troubled by frequent rockslides and damaging flooding, which has seen the over 30-mile stretch through North Carolina and Tennessee closed for months at a time. Most recently, excessive rainfall from Hurricane Helene in September 2024 saw sections of Interstate 40 wash away into a raging Pigeon River. While the physical troubles of Interstate 40 are well known, how I-40 came to be through the area is a tale of its own. Interstate 40 West through Haywood County near mile marker 10. I-40's route through the Pigeon River Gorge dates to local political squabbles in the 1940s and a state highway law written in 1921. A small note appeared in the July 28, 1945, Asheville Times. It read that the North Carolina State Highway Commission had authorized a feasibility study of a "...water-level road down [the] Pigeon River to the Tennessee l...
4 comments
Read more

I-73/I-74 and NC Future Interstates Year in Review 2024

By
Welcome to another annual review of progress in constructing North Carolina's New and Future Interstate routes. While 2024 was not too exciting, with no new segments of major routes opening, there was 1 new interstate signing, another proposed new interstate route, and the near opening of a new segment for 2 routes. As tradition, I will start off with a review of what happened with I-73 and I-74 and then move on to the major news of the year about the other new and future routes. Work continued on the I-73/I-74 Rockingham Bypass through the year. The last few months have been hoping for news of its opening before 2025, without luck. Signs of its near completion included the placement of new signs, many with interstate shields uncovered, along the Bypass and intersecting roadways. For example, these went up along US 74 East: Overhead signage at Business 74 exit which contains the future ramp to I-73 North/I-74 West. Signage was also updated heading west on US 74 approaching the unop...
Post a Comment
Read more