Pulp Mill Covered Bridge

Author's Comments

I almost did not write about this one. There is something about Pulp Mill that asks to be left alone, and I went back and forth on whether to share it at all. But the bridge has been standing since around 1810, and it has weathered worse than a few photographers, so here we are. The structure itself is unusual. Two spans, two lanes, a hybrid of Burr arch and Town lattice that engineers find more interesting than I do. What I find interesting is the way the dark wood holds against Otter Creek in late September, when the maples on the far bank have started to turn and the water runs slow and clear. The downstream bank is where you want to be. There is a small clearing where the angle opens up and the bridge sits low against the creek with the trees rising behind it, and at the right hour the whole composition warms into something that feels older than it is. Golden hour in early fall. That is the window. The light comes in low from the west and catches the upstream face of the bridge while the creek goes gold beneath it. I have stood there for an hour at a time and seen maybe two cars cross. A neighbor walking a dog. The occasional kayak. It is not a dramatic place. It does not announce itself. But there is a quiet here that the more famous Vermont bridges have lost, and I think that quiet is worth the small detour off Route 7.

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