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Northern Pacific Trail and the "S" trestle
Author: Bruce Butler
Date: 11-14-2013 - 06:42
George Andrews Wrote:
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> Thanks guys, for the replies. I believe some
> segments of the NP branch are visible from I - 90;
> also I recall that an Interstate 90 bridge was
> built over the Right of Way, just West of the ID.
> - MT. State Line @ Lookout Pass.
> Is this bike trail worth the trip ??? Is it a
> through trail from Wallace, ID., to Taft, MT., and
> the Hiawatha Trail ???
George
You are correct; much of the old NP branch is visible from I-90, especially on the east side of the pass. I have not ridden the "Northern Pacific Trail" myself, but a little research with google came up with this link: Northern Pacific Trail. It sounds like it goes all the way from Wallace to Mullen to Taft to Saltese. Is it worth the trip? Well, that is a subjective question. I can say that the "Route of the Hiawatha Trail" is certainly worth the trip and I have done it twice myself. It is one of the most popular trails in the USA.
Getting back to the "S" trestle, I revised my google map of the area a bit to show where it was a little better. Approximately between points A and B on this map. The way they bypassed the trestle was to extend the lower line segment from B to A (and beyond) on around the loop south of the trestle. The two line segments came to the same elevation somewhat south of A and they put switches at both ends of this parallel segment, extending both lines a bit north of point A. This effectively created a passing siding and an easy way for the power to runaround their train. However the length of the train would be limited to the length of the siding.
You can drive to this area easily (google shows it as 2.5 miles) from Mullen by taking Friday Rd to Willow Creek Rd (NF 8008)which goes over the freeway about 1/4 mile west of where the NP went under the freeway.
Interesting how this thread has morphed from a discussion about "BNSF HiLine traffic density" to one on Wallace area rails to trails!
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thanks guys, for the replies. I believe some
> segments of the NP branch are visible from I - 90;
> also I recall that an Interstate 90 bridge was
> built over the Right of Way, just West of the ID.
> - MT. State Line @ Lookout Pass.
> Is this bike trail worth the trip ??? Is it a
> through trail from Wallace, ID., to Taft, MT., and
> the Hiawatha Trail ???
George
You are correct; much of the old NP branch is visible from I-90, especially on the east side of the pass. I have not ridden the "Northern Pacific Trail" myself, but a little research with google came up with this link: Northern Pacific Trail. It sounds like it goes all the way from Wallace to Mullen to Taft to Saltese. Is it worth the trip? Well, that is a subjective question. I can say that the "Route of the Hiawatha Trail" is certainly worth the trip and I have done it twice myself. It is one of the most popular trails in the USA.
Getting back to the "S" trestle, I revised my google map of the area a bit to show where it was a little better. Approximately between points A and B on this map. The way they bypassed the trestle was to extend the lower line segment from B to A (and beyond) on around the loop south of the trestle. The two line segments came to the same elevation somewhat south of A and they put switches at both ends of this parallel segment, extending both lines a bit north of point A. This effectively created a passing siding and an easy way for the power to runaround their train. However the length of the train would be limited to the length of the siding.
You can drive to this area easily (google shows it as 2.5 miles) from Mullen by taking Friday Rd to Willow Creek Rd (NF 8008)which goes over the freeway about 1/4 mile west of where the NP went under the freeway.
Interesting how this thread has morphed from a discussion about "BNSF HiLine traffic density" to one on Wallace area rails to trails!
