Sarah and I went to see the Greene County Viaduct yesterday afternoon. It’s a half mile train trestle west of town. I read about it in Bloomingpedia, a wiki about Bloomington and the surrounding area. The photos on Bloomingpedia are pretty good, but they don’t give you a sense of how massive this thing is — although reading the article again, it says the bridge is 157 feet high at the highest point. Also according to Bloomingpedia, the bridge “… was finished in December of 1906 and is the third longest bridge of its kind in the world.”

It’s a pretty long, but beautiful drive out to the bridge. The land to the west of town is particularly hilly and you go down a very steep, winding road on your way to see the viaduct. It’d be a blast on a bicycle. After that you drive on a gravel road for a while, which would also be fun on a bike.

Greene County Viaduct from a distance

Neighboring hills

Near the base

The road continues

Some spikes had apparently fallen from above

We spent some time wandering around and taking photos at the base of the bridge. I decided to check out the path up to track level, and Sarah stayed below. It was a steep, eroded climb with a lot of loose rocks. I had hiking boots in the car but just wore my sandals since I didn’t want to change my shoes. It was a little tricky getting to the top, but it was worth it — there was a great view. There was a couple walking out on the tracks and at the time I was a little irked, but I tried to work them into my photos. Now I’m pleased, I think they add a sense of scale.

Steel and foliage

The trail to the top

Tracks

A couple walking on the tracks

Another angle — notice you can still see the couple on top of the viaduct. The trail descends on the right.

The hike down was more difficult than the hike up. I kept nearly slipping out of my sandals, and it was hard to get a good foothold. I made it down without incident.

We drove a little past the viaduct to get some wide shots from the other side and saw a farm by a small creek. Beautiful.

Creek and viaduct

Farm

Hill with hay bales

Sarah got some great photos as well, but she hasn’t posted hers yet. We took a scenic route home and explored the land a bit more. It felt great to do some exploring and take some photos with my new wife.

File under: Photography