I love covered bridges.

I've always loved covered bridges. I've taken may drives to seek out covered bridges. Whenever I encounter a covered bridge on a drive, I stop to see it and take pictures. Mom enjoys going along for the ride when I'm in pursuit of covered bridges.

Frederick County has a three bridge tour of historic covered bridges: Utica, Loy's Station, and Roddy Road (pictured below). They are located in northern Frederick County, all within twelve miles of each other. Each has a different truss system. You can still drive across all three. There are only three other covered bridges in Maryland: one in Cecil County and one shared by Harford/Baltimore counties. I've not seen any of these.

There are more than 200 covered bridges in Pennsylvania, more than any other state. I've knocked quite a few off my bucket list, but am no where near having seen them all. Last fall, I (we) embarked on a tour of the covered bridges in Columbia County. There are 21 covered bridges in Columbia County. Only two Pennsylvania counties have more. The highlight of the tour was the twin covered bridges: the East and West Paden Bridges. The road by-passes the bridges, so the area is now a park. 

Just 11 years after it was built, both Union and Confederate armies crossed the Sachs Covered Bridge near Gettysburg. Supposedly, three Confederate soldiers were hung from the bridge's wooden support beams. Their crime:  trying to flee the war. For this reason, the bridge is thought to be haunted. The bridge is no longer open to vehicular traffic, but you can walk across it. It is one of the most picturesque bridges I have seen (so far). It is a must-see landmark for Civil War and covered bridge enthusiasts. 

One of my favorite places to take Ty is Martins Mill Covered Bridge State Park in Antrim (near Greencastle). It has a long 200-foot bridge that spans the Conococheague Creek, a tributary of the Potomac River. The bridge is closed to traffic, but you can walk across it (it's kind of creepy), but you can't go on the other side of the creek, as it is privately owned. The bridge is in a nice park there where you can easily access the creek. Ty loves the water. He swam for the first time last summer, though I had to throw him in the creek. I hope to go tubing on the creek this summer. Don't know how Ty will feel about that. I have a life jacket for him.

Most covered bridges are red, not to resemble barns, but because red paint was cheaper. There are some white covered bridges. We stumbled across this one while driving to Raystown Lake (PA) last summer. Halls Mill Covered Bridge is one of 14 historic covered bridges in Bedford County (PA). The bridge is in excellent shape and you can drive across it. It spans the Yellow Creek. The area is clean, scenic, and well-kept. It's located in an open area so you can see the countryside all around it.

I took this picture almost 40 years ago when I was living in West Virginia. It is of the covered bridge in Philippi, one of the few that is part of the federal highway system (Route 250). It is also one of the few surviving two-lane covered bridges. Philippi was the site of the first land battle of the Civil War. Both armies heavily used the  bridge. The bridge survived the war relatively unscathed, but was damaged by severe flood in 1985 and nearly destroyed by fire in 1989. Care was taken to restore the bridge to its original form. I have not seen the restored bridge, but it's definitely on my bucket list of places to go.

Covered bridges are a colorful slice of Americana. According to Wikipedia, over 14,000 were built in the US, mostly in the years 1825 to 1875. In the mid 1880's metal bridges replaced wooden bridges, and they didn't need covered. Less than 1000 (1 in 10) covered bridges remain in the US. Thankfully, some have been added to historic registers and preserved for all to enjoy.