Looking north through these two short (this one is 308′, the yonder one is 236′) tunnels crossing a bend in the Clinch River (36.709679N, 82.646909W) in Scott County VA. As I’ve mentioned before, the date there is when this tunnel was faced up. The line blasted through in the early 1900s. About a mile up the track, at Starnes Bend, is Starnes Tunnel. If you backtrack for about seven miles, you’ll hit the Clinchport Tunnel in the Town of Clinchport.
Located in Scott County VA, where the Clinch River makes a wide bend, these two tunnels bypass it by cutting through two close ridges. The North Twin (308′) is 71.26 miles south of Elkhorn City (quickly vanishing in the distance, well over the horizon, lost in Kentucky). The South Twin is just a few feet beyond the North. If you were standing between them, you’d be at 36.709679, -82.646909 and an elevation of 1343′. South Twin is just 236′, a mere slip of a tunnel. The first picture is the south portal of South Twin, looking north to the North Twin. The second picture is the north portal of North Twin, looking south to the north portal of South Twin. They’re both dated 1912.
Blogging the Railroad Tunnels 