a riverwalk and exploring the trestle

It was such a gorgeous autumn afternoon yesterday that we decided to explore the newly opened Riverwalk in Hillsborough. It was a mostly shady walk along the Eno River, peppered with other walkers, bikers, kids on scooters and friendly dogs. The river was quiet, making for some really pretty reflections.

In just a couple of weeks, when the leaves have more fully taken on their fall colors, this walk will be especially gorgeous.

One really fun feature of the trail we took was the opportunity to explore underneath the still-in-use train trestle that allows the trains to pass over the river.  To view the rusty beauty and to discover centuries of engineering technology co-mingling was a treat.  The rail line was built in the 1800's using steel that was imported from Great Britain and at the time, the NC Railroad Company built covered wooden bridges over the river crossings. The covered bridges are gone now but what remains in this spot is a 20th century steel bridge and concrete, now resting on 1850's brick abutments.  Most of these brick abutments were replaced before 1900, making this particular spot a truly rare survivor.