Boredom Busters - Photography - Trestle Bridge at Wairewa

The old railway bridge at Wairewa was tragically burnt during last summers bushfires. Thanks to the magnificent efforts of our fire fighters some of it remains as a lasting reminder of what was there. I was lucky enough to have photographed it when complete. 

This historic bridge is about 9 km  east from Nowa Nowa, turing off the Princes Highway on Wairewa Road. The original rail line running between Bairnsdale and Orbost crossed this spot on this spectacular curved timber trestle bridge, the largest of the three on this part of the route.

While the bridge remains, the rail trail of which it is part bypasses it due to the costs that would be involved in making and keeping the bridge safe.  The rail trail descends down  alongside the structure and across Wairewa Road, then climbing back up to the level of the railway.

The bridge crosses Boggy Creek gorge which Boggy starts at Mt Johnston, in the foothills of the Alps, and drops 519 m over 62 km, flowing into Lake Tyers.  The former Bairnsdale to Orbost railway line, closed in 1987, public access on the bridge is prohibited, but it can be viewed from the adjacent East Gippsland Rail Trail.

The railway operated from 1916 until 1987. Surveying began in 1906, and construction began in 1912. It stopped just short of Orbost, on the other side of the Snowy River. Plans to continue the line through to NSW via Bombala never materialized.

Sadly the bridge is left seriously damaged and there is a chance it will be declared unsafe in it's current state and  what remains may be pulled down. Whats left of the wooden bridges on this old  line are 100+ years old, and are showing their age. Without rectification works, they will be all gone in the next 20 or less years unless some form of ongoing maintenance and rescue it instigated.

This bridge, (or what remains of the structure) along with others remaining are part of this regions history and every effort should be made to preserve what is left for all to admire.

It is structures like these, and their inherent history which draws visitors to this region. 

Visitation is a vital, long term and necessary source of income which will be so important in the rebuilding of this area after not only the 2020 Bushfires but the CoVid 19 virus recession.

Photos copyright John Munns