Beauty in an old bridge

I took this photo yesterday evening on the far side of the old Young's Bay Bridge. For those not familiar with Astoria, this bridge is on the opposite site of the Astoria hill from downtown, where I seem to take most of my photos. The water in the background is Young's Bay, and the hint of a bridge on the horizon to the right is the new bridge, just called "Young's Bay Bridge." It's a bit wider and gets most of the traffic now, because it carries Highway 30, which is the only route through Astoria from the east on this side of the river (it's much faster than the route on the other side of the river), and it turns carries traffic down the coast. For locals, it also connects Astoria to Warrenton, Hammond, Seaside, Gearhart, etc., all on the Oregon side of the Columbia.

The water of Young's Bay merges with the Columbia River at the new bridge. The scene of Lewis and Clark's wet winter here and their canoe landing are buried in the apparently-thin line of trees on the horizon on the left. The ocean is a number of miles beyond what you see here. The tall and scenic Astoria-Megler bridge, most often associated with this town, is invisible to the right and behind the Astoria hill.

Note: It's not just the size of the bridge that affects its use, but the landing point. It's a long detour (though interesting) to get from the landing point of one bridge to the landing point of the other on the west and south sides of Young's Bay. Most of the places to shop are where the new bridge lands, too.

. Happy Skywatch Friday