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ShastaDam, Shasta Lake, Mt. Shasta in 2006
Three Shastas in 2006,
Dam, Lake, and Mountain
 (courtesy Eric Cassano)

Shasta Lake's Hidden
Highway 99 Treasures
     

Question:

Why do California Highway 99 fans shamelessly enjoy a good drought?

     

Answer:

Because that is when low water in Shasta Lake reveals long-submerged vestiges
of historic Highway 99.


               

A small bridge in O'Brien inlet has been hit by one too many boats.
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California's Sacramento River was impounded behind Shasta Dam in the early 1940s as part of a huge irrigation endeavor called the Central Valley Project. Many miles of US99 including a number of bridges, plus miles of railroad track and tunnels were innundated as the water rose. But now and then the treasures reappear, as they did in late 2008.

To read a detailed article about this place, run and get yourself a copy of American Road Magazine, Winter 2009 issue.

Meanwhile, enjoy some additional photos that weren't in the magazine article.

               

A postcard view of the Pollock bridge before it was submerged. It reappeared in 2008 for the first time since 1977.
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What a mess!
O'Brien bridge, revealed.
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A masonry retaining wall reappeared in 2008.
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The old road bed at Salt Creek is used for fishing access whenever the lake gets low.
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A double decker car/train bridge replaced the original (disappearing) Pit River bridge.
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A 1917 bridge at Charlie Ck. is further up the canyon from the one currently used.
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A train tunnel appears out of the mud of the lake bottom, now just a river.
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The deck on the 1925 Charlie Creek bridge was raised to accommodate the lake but hasn't been needed lately.
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A 1914 road cut on Hwy 99 showed itself again in 2008.
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Ever since the river was turned into a boatable skiable lake, Klub Klondike in Lakehead has been a favorite watering hole.
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The lake was close to being full in this postcard view of the new double decker Pit River Bridge.
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