The Portland-Columbia Pedestrian Bridge crosses the Delaware River between Portland, Pennsylvania and Columbia, New Jersey. This virtual geocache can be accessed from either side of the bridge. On the Pennsylvania side, there is on-street parking on the main road (Route 611) right near the bridge. Those accessing the bridge from the New Jersey side can park near the bridge on the end of Green Street near the intersection of Washington Street.
The current bridge, a truss style bridge, opened on October 22, 1958. The original bridge that was at this location was built in 1869 and was a 775 foot long (18 feet wide) wooden covered bridge. This bridge was originally used to move cattle from Columbia, NJ to the Portland Railyards. No more than 15 head of cattle, sheep, or pigs were allowed on the bridge at one time. Starting in 1917, cars were allowed and you had to pay a toll to cross this bridge. After being bought by an agency to eliminate tolls in 1926, the bridge became free to cross. It was opened for automobile traffic until 1953, when a new bridge was built just south of this location for car traffic. The bridge withstood many storms and floods for almost 100 years. When Hurricane Diane hit on August 19, 1955, three of the four spans of this timber bridge were washed downstream. This was the last of 16 covered bridges that once spanned the Delaware River. The current pedestrian bridge is built on the exact site of the original bridge and the original piers were used to support the pedestrian bridge.
To claim a find for this Virtual Cache, you must do the following:
1. Count how many green gratings there are when you walk from the end of the bridge to the coordinates (center of bridge). Be sure to count ONLY the green gratings and not the solid green metal pieces that span the width of the bridge. The coordinates (near the center of the bridge), will take you to a location marking the Pennsylvania/New Jersey state line. DO NOT INCLUDE THIS ANSWER IN YOUR LOG. You may log the cache then send me your answer.
2. Optional... Take a picture of the old railroad viaduct bridge which is visible to the north or the Portland-Columbia Toll Bridge which is visible to the south and post it with your log on the cache description page. Optional again if you want to be in the picture.
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NOTE: If you enjoyed this virtual geocache, there is another virtual with a similar theme further downstream on the Delaware River between NJ and PA. Check out GC9P6A2 - "Caching in Two States at Once - NJ/ PA Edition".
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Virtual Rewards 3.0 - 2022-2023
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between March 1, 2022 and March 1, 2023. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 3.0 on the Geocaching Blog.