Arcata to Santa Rosa

CA · Arcata → Santa Rosa

The most expensive railroad in America to keep open — and the Eel River finally won.

The Northwestern Pacific was formed in 1907 to finish a railroad linking the San Francisco Bay Area with Eureka and the redwood country. The hard part was the Eel River Canyon: miles of crumbling slopes where the ground never stops moving. The last spike was driven at Cain Rock in October 1914.

From then on the canyon tried to swallow the railroad. Slides, floods and washouts closed it again and again, most famously in the 1964 Christmas flood. Crews rebuilt it every time, and it became known as one of the most expensive lines in the country to maintain.

In 1998 federal regulators shut down the line over unsafe track, and it has never really come back. The dozens of trestles and bridges are still standing, and the state plans to turn much of the route into the Great Redwood Trail. Around Willits, the Skunk Train still runs tourist trips on its own line.

⚠️ Before you go: every railroad on this map is private property. A line that looks abandoned may still be owned by a railroad, used to store rail cars, or put back into service at any time — sometimes with no warning. Before going near any track, make sure it's truly abandoned (no recent use, rails not polished, no signals or cars stored on it) and that you're allowed to be there. Never assume a track is dead.

📷 Photos & stories from riders

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