Sideling Hill Tunnel and an Abandoned Stretch of the Pennsylvania Turnpike

This is the first four-lane interstate highway in the United States, the Pennsylvania Turnpike, also known as I-76, which must surely be a reference to 1776.  This section was bypassed in 1968.  See the Sideling Hill Tunnel in the distance.

Notice how narrow the lanes are and how small the median.  They repurposed old railroad tunnels under the mountains here, but they were too narrow for four lanes, so traffic through the tunnels had to merge into a two-lane: one eastbound and the other westbound.  It was cheaper just to reroute the road than to widen the tunnels.  There's at least one other abandoned tunnel, but it's on private property.

I didn't follow the abandoned stretch of road very far, but it runs for several miles through the Buchanan State Forest.  It was so stinking hot in the forest that day, and even hotter to walk on pavement.

Notice the observation deck above the mouth of the tunnel.  There's also a little garage off to the left and some offices, too.  The air blowing out of it was so cool and pleasant.  There was a singer-songwriter from Gettysburg performing there!  He was just practicing, I think, but he did have his guitar case open as if he wouldn't refuse a donation.  He was good; I wish I'd asked his name.