Archive for October 25th, 2023
Them’s boats on that river
Wednesday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
West End Bridge’s pedestrian pathway here in Pittsburgh had pulled my attentions upon itself, and mainly so for several exciting points of view which are found on its south eastern terminus. The bridge’s history was summarized in a prior post, here at Newtown Pentacle. A humble narrator plans on returning here, in the early morning hours, sometime soon for a sunrise session.
Additionally, one encountered a set of ‘Bernie Holes’ cut into the fencing where the bridge overflies the CSX Pittsburgh subdivision tracks. Nothing like a Bernie hole.
For those of you who haven’t been with me from the start, my dearly departed friend Bernard Ente was a devotee of the railroad world, and my mentor at the start of the whole Newtown Creek thing. Bernie would cut fence holes just big enough to stick a lens through at several photogenic spots along Newtown Creek, and all over Western Queens, to facilitate his art. Those of us who were fortunate enough to be in his circle refer to these artifacts of his time with us as ‘Bernie Holes.’ I doubt these are his, of course, but i call them ‘Bernie Holes’ nevertheless.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Bernie also introduced me to the NY Harbor community, where I was infected by a real appreciation of tugboats and the importance of the towing industry. A Towing outfit, here in Pittsburgh, is based out of a spot nearby the West End Bridge. Observationally, they mainly move fuel and mineral barges. There’s another set of these docks further east on the Monongahela River, nearby the Edgar Thomson steel mill.
Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be any mechanism here for interaction between the tug or tow boats and the freight rail which is commonly witnessed as crossing through the city. Personally, I also find it odd that there isn’t a ferry system in Pittsburgh given the dense population centers stacked up on the shorelines of the 3 rivers.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
After leaving the West End Bridge, one continued along the Monongahela shoreline and the river ‘rail to trail’ pathway. It’s actually a bit scary, getting from ‘A’ to ‘B,’ but I’m not the timid type and would often scuttle along roadways in NYC that were far more dangerous for pedestrians. You ever walk the Astoria Boulevard fenceline of St. Michael’s Cemetery between 49th & 77th streets? Brrr.
That’s the Fort Pitt bridge which that boat is navigating under.
Back tomorrow with something different, at this – your Newtown Pentacle.
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