Wishing to include as many scenic wonders throughout the Columbia River Gorge, highway planners tackled the daunting Oneonta Gorge along the route. Here four major waterfalls descend from the high gorge walls, including the Lower, Middle and Upper Oneonta falls. Part of a wonderful 2.7 mile hike, the falls were first photographed by Carleton Watkins in 1849. It's unclear when, but the waterfalls and gorge area took on the name for Watkins’s home town back in New York.
   Built in 1914, county contractors were tested during highway construction in the Oneonta Gorge area. A 200 foot high basaltic outcropping could only be passed with the aid of a tunnel. Carefully blasting their way through the rock, crews manage to preserve the thin outer edge of the cliff face. Douglas fir was used to line the interior of the tunnel to protect its future highway travelers. After the Oneonta Gorge Bridge was completed the following year, this dramatic section of the scenic highway was ready for travel.
   Pacific Coast moisture and periods of frost and thaw cycles continued to plague the tunnel's integrity. Rock spalling and rotten timbers were common until this section of Route 30 was bypassed on a lower unused rail route and the tunnel closed.
   More than 60 years had passed since the bridge was abandoned and the tunnel back-filled, when the idea of bike and walking path surfaced utilizing the bridge-tunnel combo. Thanks to a multi-agency partnership, a restoration project reopened the 125 foot tunnel, replicating the original supporting timbers and replacing the dry-stacked rock entrance surround. Today the Oneonta Tunnel restoration project adds a popular section to the historic Columbia River Highway State Trail. A grand reopening in 2009 dedicated this walking-biking trail section, which will one day extend 73 miles from Warrandale to Hood River.
   Just eight years after the Oneonta Gorge tunnel was opened, it was burned by the Eagle Creek Fire, destroying the wood lining. The area remained closed for a few years, but has been repaired and reopened once again for biking and walking.

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