Gribblenation

09/25/2026

It’s so let’s travel with Gribblenation’s Adam through three roundabouts on his commute in Charlotte.

09/25/2026

California State Route 120 passes through the community of Groveland upon climbing to the top of the New Priest Grade and passing through Big Oak Flat. In modern times the unincorporated communities of Big Oak Flat and Groveland more or less have consolidated. This view is facing eastward at some of the remaining mining era structures still in Groveland.

The Big Oak Flat-Groveland area is tied to the beginnings of the California Gold Rush in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. In 1848 James Savage staked out gold claims in what which came be known as Savage's Diggings. Savage's Diggings was located near an Oak Tree which was used as a landmark which led to the community to assume the name Big Oak Flat. Garrote was founded near Big Oak Flat and the claims of James Savage. Following the emergence of tourism traffic to Yosemite upon the completion of Big Oak Flat Road in 1874 the community's name of Garrote would be changed to Groveland.

In 1853 the Grizzly Gulch Trail was declared a public highway by Tuolumne County. By 1859 a new highway was completed along the southern flank of Grizzly Gulch as a franchise toll road. This highway at the time was known as the Grizzly Gulch Wagon Road and provided direct access from Jacksonville to the Big Oak Flat-Groveland area. The Grizzly Gulch Wagon Road proved not to be as popular as Wards Ferry from Sonora due to the high gradients and longer distance traveled. In time the Grizzly Gulch Wagon Road would come to be known as the Priest Grade (alternatively Priest Hill).

The slow pace of travel was largely dictated by the heavy climb on the Priest Grade which made it difficult for large loads to ascend. By 1901 some early steam cars were able to ascend the Priest Grade but it proved to be nearly impossible for early gasoline powered cars. In 1912 the communities of Big Oak Flat and Groveland hired a surveyor to locate a new grade along the northern flank of Grizzly Gulch as replacement for the Priest Grade. Construction of a seven-foot-wide roadway along northern Grizzly Gulch began in 1912 via local donations.

By 1913 the New Priest Grade Road was completed. Both New Priest Grade Road was purchased by Tuolumne County as a public roadway. New Priest Grade Road permitted easier travel to the Big Oak Flat-Groveland area for automobiles. The State of California added the New Priest Grade Road as part of Legislative Route Number 40 via 1915 Legislative Chapter 396. Specifically, the New Priest Grade Road and the Big Oak Flat Road were brought into the State Highway System as:

"that certain toll road in Tuolumne and Mariposa counties known as the Big Oak Flat and Yosemite Toll Road beginning at a point near the former location of Jack Bell Sawmill in Tuolumne Cty and extending thence in an E-ly direction through a portion of Mariposa Cty at Hamilton Station, thence again into Tuolumne Cty, past Hearden Ranch, Crocker Station, Crane Flat, and Gin Flat to the boundary line of the original Yosemite Grant near Cascade Creek."

In August 1934 much of Legislative Route Number 40 would be assigned as California State Route 120. In 1964 the California Highway Commission would select a freeway alignment which was designed to bypass the Priest Grades, Big Oak Flat and Groveland. Ultimately this bypass was never constructed, and California State Route 120 remained essentially unchanged into modern times.

09/25/2026

Old Pony Express Road in Woodfords is a small, bypassed portion California State Route 88 which included the original Woodfords Junction. Woodfords Junction was the crossroads at which California State Route 88 would pick up multiplexes of California State Route 4 and 89. Woodfords was bypassed in 1963 amid wider improvements to California State Route 88 and the Carson Pass Highway. The original highway alignment in Woodfords was renamed to commemorate an 1860 Pony Express remount station which was located at Cary's Barn.

Old Pony Express Road in Woodfords is a small, bypassed portion California State Route 88 which included the original Woodfords Junction. W...

09/25/2026

The 12-mile dirt segment of Pozo Road might not be advisable in wet weather. However, it is very much advised if you're looking to trace the early alignment California State Route 178 over Pozo Summit (elevation 2,635 feet above sea level).

Pozo Road is an approximately 34.7-mile rural highway located in San Luis Obispo County. Pozo Road begins at California State Route 58 near Santa Margarita and loops back to it near the ghost town site of La Panza. The corridor of Pozo Road passes through remote terrain of the Santa Lucia Mountains, San Jose Valley, the ranching town of Pozo and La Panza Mountains. The 12 miles of Pozo Road located in the La Panza Mountains of Los Padres National Forest are comprised of a poorly graded dirt surface.

The corridor that is now Pozo Road was constructed during the 1850s east from El Rancho San Jose (renamed Pozo in 1881). This stage road was one of the fastest ways from the population coastal segments of San Luis Obispo County to reach San Joaquin Valley. For a time, the corridor would be known as the "Bakersfield Road" but eventually came to be far more associated with Pozo.

Most of Pozo Road would enter the State Highway System as an extension of Legislative Route Number 58 west of Bakersfield in 1933. In August 1934 the corridor would be assigned as a component of California State Route 178. From the former gold mining community of La Panza the corridor of California State Route 178 followed Pozo Road over the La Panza Range and through Pozo itself. The initial State Highway alignment west of Pozo followed what is now River Road and a grade through what is now Santa Margarita Lake.

In 1942 California State Route 178 would be realigned west of Pozo onto a more direct routing to Santa Margarita. This realignment was necessary due to the United Army Corps of Engineers having constructed Salinas Dam. The realigned State Highway passed by the Rinconada Mine which was still then a prominent Mercury mine.

In 1955 the Division of Highways would swap maintenance of Pozo Road with San Luis Obispo County for Calf Canyon Road. California State Route 178 was realigned onto the more favorable grades of Calf Canyon Road which largely bypassed the La Panza Mountains. California State Route 58 would inherit the Calf Canyon routing when it was created in 1964.

Since being relinquished from the State Highway System in 1955 the corridor of Pozo Roads has seen incremental improvements. This corridor is one of the longest intact bypassed State Highway routings in California.

09/24/2026

One of the most well-known landmarks around the city of Pismo Beach is the Freeway Rock. The rock is difficult to miss while passing through the city on southbound US Route 101 (and California State Route 1).

The Pismo Freeway Rock is a geographic formation which located in the median of US Route 101 in Pismo Beach between Exits 191B and 191A. The rock formation has been present along the main north/south coastal highway since the founding of Pismo Beach in 1891. In November 1926 the rock became a feature of US Route 101 when the US Route System was created.

The Pismo Freeway Rock is often subject conjecture regarding why it still exists. The original alignment of US Route 101 followed what is now the southbound freeways lanes between Shell Beach and Price Street. In 1949 the Division of Highways constructed northbound lanes east of the rock which functionally placed it in the middle of the early freeway grade.

09/23/2026

You probably can't eat a peach for hours. However, depending on your ability to corner you can probably knock out Peachy Canyon Road west of Paso Robles solidly in under twenty minutes. You can also get a sense for how much the w**e industry has overtaken the former mercury mining areas once tied to Adelaida.

Peachy Canyon Road is an approximately 10-mile rural highway corridor located in the w**e region of the Santa Lucia Mountains west of Paso Robles. Peachy Canyon Road begins at Vineyard Drive and terminates at the Paso Robles city limit where it becomes Pacific Avenue.

Peachy Canyon Road is not named after peach flowers but rather a horse thief who was known at Rancho Paso de Robles as "Peachy." Peachy was known to use the canyon which now carries his name as a hideout prior to being apprehended. In 1886 the town site of Paso Robles would be plotted by the Southern Pacific Railroad. The corridor of Peachy Canyon Road was developed to carry traffic from Paso Robles westward to the Klau and Buena Vista mercury mines of Adelaida.

The community of Adelaida was a small mining town which located in the Santa Lucia Mountains west of the Paso Robles. Adelaida was founded in the late 1860s around the Klau and Buena Vista Quicksilver (mercury) mines. The Klau Mine is the oldest in the Adelaida area having opened in 1868. The Adelaida community would obtain Post Office Service in 1877 and would grow to a population of approximately 500 by the early 1880s.

The Adelaida Post Office closed in 1936 as it became easier to reach the mercury mines on trips originating from Paso Robles. Adelaida would decline to a ghost which now only has a handful of remaining structures from the mining heyday. The mercury mines in the area would operate until 1970.

09/23/2026

NY 12, NY 26, and NY 812 meet in downtown Lowville, New York, the county seat of Lewis County and home to a large dairy producing industry. Kraft has a factory south of downtown where copious amounts of cream cheese are produced. While Lowville may seem like a typical Upstate town from the various impressions I've made over the years, I also discovered that Lowville is also home to the world's largest producer of bowling pins, and after the pins are made, they travel on roads like NY 12 en route to their destination.

- Doug

09/23/2026

North South Road is a 25.4-mile highway corridor located in Eldorado National Forest in the Sierra Nevada range. North South Road begins at Omo Ranch Road and extends northward to Morman Emigrant Trail via the ghost town of Caldor. North South Road is designated as Forest Road 10N83 and despite being a single lane wide is fully paved.

Construction of North South Road began in the early 1930s. The purpose of the corridor was to create additional access to the California Door Company town of Caldor and act as the main north/south highway in Eldorado National Forest. By 1932 two notable Warren Pratt Truss spans were installed by the Forest Service at the Middle Fork and North Fork of the Cosumnes River. During the 1980s the northern end of North South Road would be realigned away from Cosumnes Mine Road towards Morman Emigrant Trail.

Much of the corridor of North South Road would burn during the Caldor Fire in 2021. The deck of the historic truss span at the North Fork Consumnes River (known as the Capps Crossing Bridge) was burned along with over 1,000 structures.

North South Road is a 25.4-mile highway corridor located in Eldorado National Forest in the Sierra Nevada range. North South Road begins at...

09/23/2026

Both Carolinas are placing roundabouts at rural intersections to reduce crash rates. Better visibility and lower speeds at these intersections are two of the safety benefits DOTs see from these installations.

Below is a photo from 2024 of a then recently installed roundabout on US 29 near Williamston, South Carolina.

Are you seeing roundabouts in more rural areas of your state?

09/23/2026

The Richmond-San Rafael Bridge of Interstate 580 isn't exactly a looker, but it is probably the most unique structure crossing San Francisco Bay. This 5.5-mile-long bridge carries a double decker Cantilever central span with Pratt Truss approaches.

The purpose of the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge was to replace the ferry route between Point San Quentin and Castro Point. The ferry had been incorporated in 1913 and began carrying cars over San Francisco Bay by May 1915. Studies conducted in 1949 at the behest of Marin County and city of Richmond found construction of a bridge to be feasible.

The upper deck of the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge would open to traffic on September 1, 1956. The roadway on the lower deck would take longer to construct and would not open to vehicles until August 20, 1957. The structure was initially signed as California State Route 17 upon opening but was not then legislatively part of the State Highway System. This legislative gap wouldn't be resolved until 1964 when the bridge was added into the definition of California State Route 17 amid the greater State Highway Renumbering.

In 1983 Caltrans sought to add the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge to the Interstate system as a non-chargeable corridor. The agency initially sought the designation of Interstate 180 but opted instead for an extension Interstate 580. The extension of Interstate 580 negated the need to have to reassign California State Route 180. California State Highways are legislatively codified and therefore can't carry duplicate number assignment. By proxy the extension of Interstate 580 also led to the creation of a wrong-way concurrency multiplexed along Interstate 80 from Oakland to Albany.

The Richmond-San Rafael Bridge initially was opened with two travel lanes on both Cantilever decks. The structure was designed to accommodate the eventual expansion to a total of six-lanes. In 2015 the Bay Area Toll Authority approve a plan to use of the extra lower lane for motorized vehicles during commute rush hours. The same plan also called for using the extra lane on upper deck as a pedestrian path.

The pedestrian path on upper deck of the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge would open during November 2019. The full-time use for a pedestrian lane was controversial given the span sees over 80,000 motorized vehicles daily. The westbound lanes would frequently back up when motorized vehicles broke down on the upper deck due to the lack of a shoulder. During October 2025, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and Bay Area Toll Authority approved restricting the hours of operation for the upper deck pedestrian lane. The pedestrian lane is now closed from 11 PM on Sundays to 2 PM on Thursdays to permit westbound travelers a shoulder lane.