I continue my Unprocessed Sunday series with another of my favorite subjects, Old Highway 80.OH8044: A small remaining piece of concrete from the original Highway 80 in Ocotillo that was not destroyed in 1976 when Hurricane/Tropical Storm Kathleen reached California. In the background is the San Diego-Arizona Eastern railway and a stretch of Interstate 8 across Myer Creek that was also destroyed in 1976.OH8056: Last remaining section of US Route 80 before it descends the In-Ko-Pah Gorge. Interstate 8 travels through the gorge just below. Much of the remaining road in the gorge was destroyed in the 1976 flooding from Hurricane/Tropical Storm Kathleen.OH8065: The town of Jacumba Hot Springs still has several hundred residents, but it is also somewhat of a ghost town. The town was bypassed when Instate 8 was built several miles North of the Route 80 location. Business was severely affected and many storefronts struggle to stay open.OH8073: This small road pre-dates Route 80 and possibly Bankhead Highway as well. This section is in a small area South of Descanso called Los Terrinitos. The road to the left is a cutoff that connects between present day Highway 79 and Wildwood Glen Lane, which was Route 80. This connector is now private property.OH8086: This is at the end of the Wildwood Glen section of Old Highway 80. Interstate 80 was built to the South, and also cut out the “Deadman’s Curve” section of Route 80, which is why the road dead-ends here. Below is an old Bell telephone manhole. Modern fiber-optics, natural gas, and other infrastructure still follow the original Route 80 right-of-way.OH8092: Chains Required twisted sign along Old Highway 80 just up from Buckman Springs and below Laguna Summit.OH80108: Gravesite and Tombstone for Amos Buckman. Legend, true or not, has it that his grave was accidentally uncovered when Interstate 8 was being built in Buckman Springs in the 1970s, and this was then created for him. Many people photograph (and graffiti) his Bottling Plant and his home, even if they don’t know who Amos Buckman was, but few take the time to locate his tombstone. While not directly on Highway 80, it is very close and important to the history of the highway.OH80122: Another abandoned section of roadway near Bankhead Springs in San Diego County.
As always, I thank you for viewing, and I hope you enjoy the images.
T.M. Schultze is a San Diego-based photographer, traveller, and writer. He writes, photographs, and draws things of the outdoors that have inspired humans for thousands of years. He co-authored the Photographer’s Guide to Joshua Tree Park which can be purchased here.
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2 thoughts on “Unprocessed Sunday: Old Highway 80”
Quite the interesting place. I can just imagine stumbling upon that manhole cover and wondering what remains down there.
Quite the interesting place. I can just imagine stumbling upon that manhole cover and wondering what remains down there.
No manhole covers were removed because I don’t want to know what lurks there!