Vallonia and the Medora Covered Bridge were great, but the part of this trip to which I looked most forward was the eleven or so miles of old US 50 that are country roads today, in Jackson and Lawrence Counties. At last, my travel buddy and I reached them, and they were every bit as picturesque (and fun to drive) as I had hoped.

I really enjoyed the textures along the road. If there had been more places to safely pull over, I would have taken 100 photographs along this stretch.

Since so much of this old alignment is wooded, the bright sunlight of this hot day left crisp shadows along the road.

Old US 50

If a photograph is a sentence, a road running through it is its verb.

Old US 50

Sometimes the road itself added texture from its patchwork of repairs.

Old US 50

The Lawrence County portion of the old route was signed as such to make it easy to follow.

Old US 50

My favorite textures came from this bridge, which spans Back Creek. It was built in 1993 to replace a 1915 pony truss bridge.

Old US 50

I think it’s interesting that a steel deck was chosen; that’s not common among modern bridges.

Old US 50

But it sure made for some great shadows underneath!

Old US 50

This being farm country, we saw plenty of soybeans.

Old US 50

It wasn’t until we returned to current US 50 that I noticed any corn. The Plaza Motel’s great sign seems to keep watch over this farmer’s field.

Plaza Motel

Interesting things to photograph can be right nearby. My neighborhood’s trees are great subjects when they flower in spring and when their leaves change color in fall.

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Comments

7 responses to “Road textures on Old US 50 in Indiana”

  1. Kurt Garner Avatar

    Great eye for the road Jim. I think that too often I get caught up with what is along the road to appreciate the road itself.

  2. vanilla Avatar

    Another great leg along the US50 jaunt. I like the “shadow pictures” very much.

  3. Jim Avatar

    Thanks, guys!

  4. sorrentolens Avatar

    Love those old motel signs – great treasures along the road. Good luck.

    1. Jim Avatar

      It’s always great to come across one, especially out in the middle of nowhere like this one.

  5. Bernie Kasper Avatar

    Soybeans in Indiana..who would have thunk it !!!

    Love the old signs !!

    1. Jim Avatar

      That motel sign is a real beauty!

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