Goat Canyon Trestle - West Approach - Built in 1932 to by pass a tunnel that had collapsed in an earthquake (located to the right, out of the frame) the trestle at Goat Canyon in the Carrizo Gorge is over 180 feet high and at more than 600 feet long, it was the largest non-liner wooden bridge in the United States.
Currently, it is still the second longest wooden bridge in the U.S. and after the line was embargoed in 2008, it has been in a state of disrepair.
In the past there has been plans to get the line running again, but nothing has panned out so far, and the latest attempt is beginning to look like an investment scam gone bad.
Getting to the trestle involves at 14 mile round trip hike through Anza Borego State Park, located in the Sonoran Desert about 160 miles east of San Diego near El Centro California.
The hike itself involves mountainous terrain that is inhabited by rattle snakes, big horn sheep, coyotes, mountain lions and the famous jumping cholla cactus (personally, I think the cactus is the worse than the snakes).
Additionally, it is a hike that should be undertaken only in the winter months since summertime temperatures at the site average in the 100’s from May to October.
Further, there is no running water, no roads to the outside world, and no cell service in the gorge, so if something happens, you and your traveling companions are on your own. This line has been under an embargo order and there has not been regularly scheduled traffic on the line since since 2008.
