High Steel Bridge

High Steel Bridge
High Steel Bridge
Carries	Passenger vehicles and logging trucks
Crosses	South fork, Skokomish River
Locale	Mason County, Washington
Official name	Forest Service Road 2202
Maintained by	United States Forest Service
Characteristics
Design	Truss arch
Material	Steel
Total length	685 feet (209 m)
Height	420 feet (130 m)
History
Designer	American Bridge Co.
Opened	1929
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location	Shelton, WA
Coordinates
MPS	Historic Bridges/Tunnels in Washington State TR
NRHP Reference #	82004265
Added to NRHP	July 16, 1982

High Steel Bridge is a truss arch bridge that spans the south fork of the Skokomish River in Mason County, Washington. It was built in 1929 by Simpson Logging Company as part of a logging railroad.

Its construction opened up an area of Olympic Peninsula timber that was previously inaccessible. The bridge span supported a single logging railroad track. In 1950, the tracks were replaced with wooden planks, allowing vehicles to pass. 1964 brought the relatively modern addition of concrete decking and guardrails.

The High Steel Bridge is one of only two Washington bridges that is considered a long-span structure formerly used as part of a logging railroad.

References

• High Steel Bridge at ExploreHoodCanal.com, Mason County's official tourism site
• [1] from Exotic Hikes and the Outdoor Society, the Olympic Peninsula and National Park Experts