Gribblenation

  Nestled in the town of Simsbury, Connecticut is a rather unique bridge that crosses some 18 feet over the Farmington River . That bridge is the Old Drake Hill Flower Bridge. Built in 1892 by J.E. Buddington of New Haven, Connecticut, this old metal truss bridge is 183 feet in length and has served various types of transportation modes throughout its history. In fact, it is one of only three Parker through truss bridges that remain in the State of Connecticut. While people had crossed the Drake Hill Road bridge for decades, whether it be with a horse and buggy or a car, I'm not sure that people from earlier generations could have imagined the current chapter of this bridge's life. While a modern two lane bridge was opened just to the north of the Old Drake Hill Flower Bridge in 1992, the old bridge was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. Given its status as a historic bridge, the old bridge remained in use for pedestrians and bicycles. Then in 1995, th...

  One of the shortest covered bridges and more remote covered bridges in Kings County, New Brunswick is the Malone Covered Bridge. Also known as the Kennebecasis River No. 23 Covered Bridge as the bridge crosses the Kennebecasis River (which has plenty of covered bridges that cross it), the bridge is 64 feet (19 feet) in length. Built in 1911, the covered bridge is built with a Howe truss design and is named for the Malone family, which had a nearby homestead and they lent their name to the bridge. The Malone Covered Bridge is located along a quiet country road called Upper Goshen Road, not far from the communities of Goshen and Mechanic Settlement. It's not far from Fundy National Park either, which also has a few covered bridges within or bordering the park boundaries. When I visited the covered bridge, it was at the tail end of mud season, so getting there was a little tricky, but when I arrived, it was worth the drive to the bridge. Headache bars are installed at either e...

  Stretching roughly 70 miles between the state border with Idaho at the Snake River to the county seat of Baker County, Oregon at Baker City, Oregon Route 86 traverses some of the best countryside that northeastern Oregon has to offer. Part of the Hells Canyon Scenic Byway and also known as the Baker-Copperfield Highway, OR 86 ascends from the deepest gorge in North America, past a plethora of hills to the fertile valleys where Halfway and Richland are located. Settlers first became attracted to the area when gold was struck in the southern region of the Wallowa Mountains back in the 1860s, and stuck around to make a living in forestry or agriculture. Further west, OR 86 follows the Powder River and crosses plateaus with a more high desert terrain complete with sagebrush. As the highway draws closer to Baker City, OR 86 crosses the historic Oregon Trail, and if you look closely enough, you may even spot some old wagon ruts from the days of yore. Another one of Oregon's mountain r...