There’s a Historic Bridge in Northern Michigan the Department of Transpiration Maintains for Snowmobile Use Only

Michigan's Department of Transportation is most commonly thought of in terms of maintaining the state's vast network of highways. The agency is less thought of for the work they do with air and rail travel. There is one spot, perhaps unique in the state where MDOT is doing substantial work and all of it for snowmobilers.

The location is an old crossing of the Au Sable River in Northern Michigan. M-65 is the north-south highway through that region. There, a few miles south of a little settlement named Glennie, is where M-65 crosses the Au Sable. The crossing is at the 5 Channels Dam. A historic bridge once did the work of carrying the highway's traffic.

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That bridge was rehabilitated in 1998 but closed to traffic just a few years later. The reason given was the narrowness of the bridge and steep approaches. Since MDOT had recently done work on the bridge, the decision was made to not demolish the old bridge as the highway was redone. Instead, unlike so many other bridge that meet the wrecking ball,

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MDOT did not demolish the historic bridge and instead continued to own the historic bridge, allowing it to stand next to its replacement as a non-motorized crossing, later planning to also allow snowmobile use on the bridge. Thanks to the rehabilitation that occurred only a few years before the bridge's vehicular service ended, the bridge remains in excellent condition today.

The old bridge is easily seen on Google Maps Street View, labelled as Old M-65 Trail - a nod to the legacy roadway and the bridge's current use. The pavement approaching the bridge is deteriorating a bit and is marked with the smaller road signs common to snowmobiling. There is a Road Closed sign for any driver who does manage to hit the side road from the main highway.

Why exactly did MDOT replace a recently rehabilitated bridge? The question came up on a Facebook group dedicated to old road alignments. The answer:

long story short it just isn't modern. It's VERY narrow and the approaches are so steep! I wish I would have photographed them. The weather is pretty severe in the winter, and I think it was ultimately a safety issue.

So should you ever find yourself in the Au Sable Valley - taking a drive perhaps on River Road, one of Michigan's 3 National Scenic Byways - take the turn off and take a walk on the old bridge.