Three miles of abandoned railroad tunnels and snow sheds invite hikers on the east side of Donner Pass, at an elevation of more than 7000’. The name “Gold Mountain” is translated from Chinese, two words caused by the discovery of gold in California, an illusion that brought thousands of Chinese to America in search of fortune. But work was scarce, and without money it became impossible for the Chinese to bring their families, let alone make enough money to eat. Uneducated and poor, they found the only work that didn’t require a knowledge of English, only easily learned skills—work that was brutally difficult, with low pay, and the likelihood of injury or death.
More than ten thousand Chinese workers blasted tunnels, built roadbeds, and laid hundreds of miles of track, often in freezing cold or searing heat.
One of those tunnels is Tunnel #6, which took almost two years to build and cost hundreds of lives. With little more than picks, axes, and dynamite Tunnel #6 was opened in 1868 and was used continuously by transcontinental trains until 1993 when the current path through the Sierra Nevada mountains opened. Tunnel #6 is one of several that we hiked through on the abandoned railroad beds.
Looking back to the entrance. The end of tunnel 6 is on the other side of the mountain, The wooden structures were built to prevent snow from falling on the tracks.
In the spaces in-between the tunnels and sheds, one can see views of Interstate #80, Donner Pass Road, and the Eastern Sierras.
Not all snow sheds are free standing.
The walls and rocks inside the tunnels and sheds are covered with graffiti.
Rocks inside the tunnel. I was struck by the shadows and colors.
Kennedy, Lilly, the Sphinx, and a cigar-smoking alien
More than the graffiti, the patterns of light and shadow, of space and distance, are mesmerizing.
An iPhone panorama of grandson Kennedy inside one of the snow sheds. The panorama transforms a straight path into this,
Many of the snow sheds have missing walls on the east side, and light pours in through the openings.
Apparently we weren’t the only ones to have discovered the tunnels.
Leaving Tunnel #6