The Russian River snakes its way through the town of Healdsburg on its way to the Pacific Ocean. On the south side of town, the old Healdsburg Avenue auto bridge, built in 1921, still carries people across the river to this day. But next to it, the old train bridge, has not shared the same fate. It still stands tall but with signs that read Danger Keep Out. My sketchcrawl friend Phil and I spent a morning drawing the area including the old train bridge. Despite the signs and our better judgment, we stepped on to the bridge and walked about halfway across to get a better view. The structure is made mostly of steel with railroad ties holding the tracks in place. From this vantage point we could see up the river a ways until it disappeared, bending to the right behind some trees. Chinook salmon migrate along here to spawn in the fall each year. Their numbers have decrease enormously over the last few years do to, at least in part, the near drought like conditions we’ve been experiencing. But this year we are receiving slightly above normal rainfall and hopefully this will increase their numbers. After a few minutes of enjoying the view, I remember the signs warning to keep off, so we walk back to the safety of hard ground. All that fear and danger has caused my stomach to growl so we head off to my favorite local Tanqueria, Guadalajara for some tasty chicken enchiladas with mole sauce.
