Mosier Twin Tunnels

Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail

EAST TRAILHEAD	The Mosier Twin Tunnels were reopened in July of 2000 and dedicated as the Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail. The Mark O. Hatfield East Trailhead is outside of Mosier, Oregon, with the Mark O. Hatfield West Trailhead near Hood River. The actual tunnels are located on the East end of the trail near Mosier.
EIGHTEEN MILE ISLAND, or CHICKEN ISLAND	The trail is 4.6 miles long, and open to pedestrians and bicyclists. The view on the east end is spectacular, opening to vistas of the Columbia River Gorge and Eighteen Mile Island, also known as "Chicken Island," or "Chicken Charlie's Island." It is so named because it is located 18 miles downriver of the Long and Short Narrows of The Dalles, and because at one time there was a chicken ranch on the island. According to Mosier resident Willie Gholston, the "Charlie" who once resided on the island never owned any chickens and was annoyed that people referred to the place as Chicken Charlie's Island, but despite his protests the name stuck. The island now is the location of a private summer home.
	The scenery on the west end of the trail isn't as readily visible due to the growth of trees that block the view on the north side. The trail on the east end winds through cliffs of boulders and wildflower meadows for a mile before you will come to the actual Tunnels.
	Constructed during 1919-1921, the Mosier Twin Tunnels were closed in the mid-fifties. The opening of the Interstate-84 freeway gave travelers a faster and safer way to travel the gorge. The restoration has involved removal of the rock which had filled the tunnels, and the construction of a unique 700 foot long "catchment structure" on the west end of the tunnels that utilizes cellular concrete, pea gravel and 25 foot anchor bars.
	Iron bars were added to the view openings shortly after the tunnels reopened to the public. This action was taken to improve safety after a young boy fell to his death from the cliffs.
Between 1921 and 1955 when the road was closed, the area by the Mosier Twin Tunnels was the scene for regular disasters. Some were the result of head-on collisions caused by cars traveling too far into the other lane, or by cars who came around a sharp turn only to find the slopes above them had recently deposited huge boulders in the middle of the road. It was not uncommon for supply trucks to lose their load, resulting in a debris field of unclaimed products that was a boon to local residents. But some disasters were weather related. A stone just inside the first tunnel is etched with the names of travelers who became snowbound when a blizzard and avalanche blocked the tunnel. They enscribed the words "Snowbound Nov. 17-29,1921" and included the names of those entombed for 12 days. They were eventually rescued.		CLICK PHOTO TO SEE ENLARGEMENT

The Interpretive Sign reads: Mosier Twin Tunnels East. The rugged landscape of the Columbia River Gorge posed significant obstacles to the design and construction of the Historic Columbia River Highway. Here, between Hood River and Mosier, a right-of-way conflict with the railroad forced engineer John A. Elliott to locate the road away from the river and to design tunnels through steep basalt bluffs. The 17-foot-wide Mosier Twin Tunnels easily accomodated two-way traffic by Model Ts. But as automobiles became larger, accidents were common - despite widening to 20 feet. Although signals eventually regulated one-way traffic, waiting vehicles were vulnerable to falling rock from the bluffs above. With construction of a water grade thoroughfare in the 1950's, the tunnels were closed and filled. Thanks to the efforts of Oregon's Senator Mark O. Hatfield, restoration of these famous tunnels as part of a hiking and bicycling path began in 1995. The Mosier Twin Tunnels were completed in 1921 after 3 years of backbreaking labor.

The restoration project was a collaboration of the Historic Columbia River Highway Advisory Committee, Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) , Oregon State Parks, Oregon Tourism Commission, and the State Historic Preservation Department.

The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) has opened an interactive website on the Historic ColumbiaRiver Highway featuring maps, photographs, historic information and project updates. The web address is: http://www.odot.state.or.us/hcrh

This page was last updated on May 14, 2003

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