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| BNSF Railway; Avery (Wishram), Wash.; October 15, 2018 |
Of all the places in the continental United States to take railroad photographs, the Columbia River Gorge between Oregon and Washington easily makes my top three. With spectacular scenery, quaint towns, and railroads on both sides of the river, it is truly a special place.
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| BNSF Railway; Straight Point, Wash.; October 12, 2018 |
The gorge runs for approximately 80 miles, starting east of the Portland, Ore., suburbs and ending at roughly Arlington, Ore. It was used by Lewis & Clark in 1805. In the 1880s, the Oregon Railway & Navigation Company built through the gorge on the Oregon side; this is now Union Pacific.
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| Union Pacific; Mosier, Ore.; October 19, 2018 |
Railroads came to the Washington side in the early 1900s when the Great Northern and Northern Pacific railroads teamed up to form the Spokane, Portland & Seattle. This is now part of BNSF Railway.
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| BNSF Railway; Home Valley, Wash.; October 19, 2018 |
Accessing the two railroads is fairly easy. On the Washington side, State Highway 14 parallels the tracks almost all the way. Trains will outrun you on the largely two-lane road, so chasing can be difficult. However, the line is single-track with passing sidings, and trains will often have to stop for meets.
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| BNSF Railway; Dallesport, Wash.; October 15, 2018 |
The Union Pacific side is a bit trickier, as the line is paralleled by Interstate 84. While this will let you outrun trains at times, it also makes turning around to pursue a train in the opposite direction difficult, as exits are quite a distance apart. However, the UP side has the more interesting towns, with Cascade Locks, Hood River, and The Dalles all worth a visit.
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| Union Pacific; The Dalles, Oregon; March 21, 2016 |
The three towns are connected by the Columbia River Highway -- Old U.S. 30 -- which winds its way up in the mountains above the river. While not useful for chasing, there are some great views available including from the overlook above Rowena.
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| Union Pacific; Rowena, Oregon; March 21, 2016 |
Getting back and forth between Oregon and Washington is fairly easy. The Bridge of the Gods connects Cascade Locks and Stevenson, Wash. There is also a bridge between Hood River and White Salmon, Wash. A third bridge will take you between The Dalles and Dallesport, Wash. (The first two bridges are toll; the bridge at The Dalles is free).
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| BNSF Railway; Stevenson, Wash.; October 12, 2018 |
The UP has a couple of tunnels, all inaccessible due to the interstate. But on the BNSF side the tunnels are numerous, and many are right along the shoulder of State Highway 14.
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| BNSF Railway; Hood, Wash.; March 16, 2017 |
The Columbia River Gorge is pleasant in almost all types of weather. Sometimes haze will get caught in the gorge, obscuring some of the distant vistas. But if you hit it on a crystal clear day, the region is dominated by Mount Hood.
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| BNSF Railway; Dallesport, Wash.; October 15, 2018 |
On the other side of the coin, even rainy, misty days can be downright spectacular in the gorge. On its bad days, the Columbia Gorge can still be very reminiscent of Alaska.
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| BNSF Railway; Cape Horn (Washougal), Wash.; March 15, 2016 |
Fortunately, with the big railroad photography show Winterail now held in Oregon each year, I have an excuse to get back to the gorge quite often. It is, indeed, a special place.
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| BNSF Railway; Home Valley, Wash.; March 16, 2017 |
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