This Shenandoah County Virginia bridge is named for the Meem family that owned the Strathmore estate west of the Shenandoah River. The bridge runs 204 feet over the North Fork of the Shenandoah River and utilizes a Burr-Arch design. The original bridge was built in 1892-1893 and was torched by vandals on Halloween of 1976. After salvaging the original timbers, the bridge was reconstructed and eventually undergirded with steel beams and concrete piers. This is the third covered bridge on this spot. Records show the first bridge was burned in 1862 as Stonewall Jackson went up the valley ahead of Union General John C. Fremont, prior to the battles of Harrisonburg, Cross Keys and Port Republic. Another was washed away in a flood in 1870. The bridge is in outstanding shape and open to regular vehicular traffic. You can access the bridge from state route 11 and there is a small pull off with picnic tables available. The Strathmore House Bed and Breakfast is within walking distance of the bridge.
I shot this as nine bracketed RAW frames then combined into an HDR and tone mapped in Photomatix Pro with some extra work done in Topaz Adjust to bring out the wood tones.
