Auburn-Foresthill Bridge

We are enjoying ourselves these days.  It takes a while for it to sink in that we don't have to stick to a strict schedule and, if something isn't completed today, well maybe it will be tomorrow, or the day after, etc.  I am just so happy being  back surrounded by valley oaks and all the critters we have seen out in the country.  So far we have seen jack rabbits, a rafter of turkeys, drift of quail, two different herds of deer, one lonely fox and, as I mentioned in an earlier blog, a descent of woodpeckers some scrub jays and a few hummingbirds.  Those darn woodpeckers are trying to punch their way into the attic of the cottage so it can be fun to play with them.  They peck and we open the doors and scare them off.  They sit in the trees until we walk away from the doors and come right back.  This can go on for some time before they wear us out and we give up...they never do!!

OK, show of hands.  How many of you remember Vin Diesel driving off of this bridge at the beginning of the movie  XXX???  Why do I ask?  Because we drive by this almost every time we leave our cottage to go to town or to visit family and friends.  You come around a "kiss my butt" hairpin turn on Route 49 and there she is in all of her glory.  She really is awe inspiring.  She is the Auburn-Foresthill Bridge.

Auburn-Foresthill Bridge
Auburn, California, United States
730 feet high / 223 meters high
862 foot span / 263 meter span

The second highest bridge in the world upon its opening in 1973, the Auburn-Foresthill bridge is still among the 5 highest bridges in the United States.  She was built to cross a reservoir that never ended up being constructed.  The dam was permanently halted due to a series of unforeseen seismic studies, excessive cost overruns and other political and environmental concerns.  So now the folks up in the country around Foresthill have a great bridge to help them avoid all the twists and turns we experience when leaving the Cool/Pilot Hill area.

Day before yesterday with the latest rain storm, she was partially in the clouds with some ground fog  hanging up and down the hillsides.  It looked as if someone had taken cotton balls and stretched them out along the tree tops up the sides of the canyon (or holler as we West Virginians would call it!). 

We were very social this past weekend.  My ex-boss from CalFed had a party for a few folks at this home on Saturday and it was great to reconnect with my past co-workers and see what's been happening in their lives.  Then Sunday we had an early birthday dinner celebration with friends Jim and Jackie.  Jackie and Mike are both November babies.  Jim cooked a wonderful meal of lamb shanks with mashed potatoes and broccolini.  We provided the Ikeda apple pie for dessert.  It really is great to see our Northern California friends and family when we want to and take time to visit rather than the quick trips we've been taking to come here over the past 13 years.  But I miss our friends in Ohio and family in Kentucky and West Virginia.  Goes to show you can't have it all!