哥伦比亚河上的阿斯托里亚-梅格勒大桥，阿斯托里亚区，俄勒冈州，美国 Astoria-Megler Bridge on the Columbia River, Astoria, Oregon (© Dan Mihai/Getty Images)

哥伦比亚河上的阿斯托里亚-梅格勒大桥，阿斯托里亚区，俄勒冈州，美国 Astoria-Megler Bridge on the Columbia River, Astoria, Oregon (© Dan Mihai/Getty Images)

一条用桁架架起来的公路 A road you can truss

阿斯托里亚-梅格勒大桥，俄勒冈州

1805年，梅里韦瑟·刘易斯和威廉·克拉克从圣路易斯附近出发，开始了他们传奇的北美探险。穿越平原、山脉和森林，历时近两年，他们最终抵达了这个地方，目之所及是滚滚江水西去的壮阔景象，浩浩荡荡的哥伦比亚河注入太平洋，无边无际的海水一直延伸至地平线。1811年，美国毛皮公司在附近建立了阿斯托里亚堡，这是美国在西海岸的第一个殖民地。155年后，图中的阿斯托里亚-梅格勒大桥竣工通车。这是一座横跨哥伦比亚河的连续桁架桥，101号美国国道从大桥上经过，连接洛杉矶和华盛顿奥林匹亚。来自美国7个州和加拿大2个省的水流经哥伦比亚河，穿过这座全长约21474英尺，北美最长的连续桁架桥。

Astoria-Megler Bridge, Oregon

Imagine traveling for nearly two years across plains, mountains, and forests and finally arriving at this setting, where the mighty Columbia River empties into the Pacific near present-day Astoria, Oregon. That is the sight that greeted explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark in 1805 at the culmination of their legendary 8,000-mile North American expedition that originated near St. Louis.

The expedition's success opened the way for further exploration and development of the Pacific Northwest and by 1811, Fort Astoria, the first US-owned settlement on the West Coast, was established. Oregon became the 33rd state in 1859. The Astoria-Megler Bridge opened in 1966, the final piece connecting Los Angeles to Olympia, Washington, via US Route 101.

Water from seven states and two Canadian provinces flows through the Columbia, passing under the 4-mile structure, the longest continuous truss bridge in North America.