On Saturday, I returned to ex-PRR bridge across the Ohio between Weirton and Steubenville. This time, the mission was to establish the correct color of pier #1. This pier is the oldest in the current structure; it was (I think) part of the second bridge on the site (1879). I already had several photos of it, but as they were from different angles the color appeared different as well.
The photo on the left was taken from the river on October 10, 2017. We are slightly south (downstream) of the bridge. In it, the pier appears dark in color. The photo on the right was taken the same day, literally minutes apart from the other from just upstream of the bridge. In it, the pier is much lighter in color.
As a result, there remained some doubt as to the actual color of the pier. That's why we headed back to the bridge.
On my very first trip to the bridge back in 2016, I managed to get underneath the eastern approach span and discovered the stone arch. I was so surprised at seeing it that I neglected to take photos in the opposite direction. Pier 1 is directly behind me in the photo to the left. It was my objective to reach this exact spot again. To do so, you approach the bridge from the top of the hill and climb down. Originally, I had done this by finding a path north of the Veterans Memorial (automobile) bridge and walking south along the river.
In the same photo, note the water to the right. That's the "lagoon" or part of a backwater or captive area of the Ohio River.
Here's a photo of the path I followed to the bridge back in October 2016.
So this time, I wanted to focus on Pier #1. I found a different path down, but it passed under the Veterans Memorial Bridge. As my wife and I stood at the top of the path, I noticed that the bridge abutment had a storage area or compartment. There was lots of graffiti and a door to the compartment that was half open. I decided that I didn't want to walk past that open door. Anything or anyone could be living or hiding out in that space. Discretion being the better part of valor, we abandoned that path and looked for another. We were unable to find that path (the one pictured above) and decided to take the path south of the bridge. That one would take us to the "lagoon" and might provide a good photo of Pier 1.
Unfortunately, as you can see in the next 4 photos, the pier was in shadow.
I didn't realize that at the time. In the interest of thoroughness, we then moved to the Ohio side of the river to see if we could get a better angle. These were taken from the sand and gravel yard just under the bridge.
These were much like the other photos I had of the pier. Reluctantly, we headed back towards Weirton on the Veterans Memorial Bridge. Fortunately, traffic was very light and we were able to get a couple of shots, actually our best shots, from the car.
Based on these photos and others taken previously, I have enough to determine the color of the pier.
Thanks for looking,
George
