NWP — Eel River Canyon (North)

CA · Eel River Canyon → Fortuna

The canyon that swallowed a railroad, one landslide at a time.

Heads up: Very remote, slide-prone canyon. Tunnels and fills are unstable.

The Northwestern Pacific finished its line from the San Francisco Bay Area to Eureka in 1914. The last spike was driven in the Eel River Canyon in October. That opened the redwood country to the rest of California, and trains hauled lumber south for most of the 20th century.

The canyon was a nightmare to keep open. The ground along the Eel River is constantly moving, and every wet winter brought slides and washouts. The 1964 Christmas flood destroyed long stretches, and they were rebuilt at huge cost. Crews spent decades patching tunnels, shoring up fills and replacing bridges.

In 1998 the Federal Railroad Administration issued an emergency order closing the line over unsafe conditions, and it never reopened through the canyon. Today the corridor is being handed over for the Great Redwood Trail, one of the longest rail-trail projects in the country. The rails, tunnels and bridges are still there, slowly being reclaimed by the canyon.

⚠️ 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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