Dent Bridge

The Dent Bridge is a suspension bridge located near Orofino, Idaho, United States. It is located 17 miles (27 km) up the North Fork of the former Clearwater River, now the Dworshak Reservoir. Completed in 1971, the bridge has a main span of 1,550 feet (470 m).

History

Built in conjunction with the Dworshak Dam by the Army Corps of Engineers during the early 1970s, this bridge provides local access over the flooded river, now Dworshak Reservoir. Without the bridge, vehicle access from Ahsahka to the small community of Elk River would be blocked off. The US Army Corps of Engineers carefully weighed the possibilities for getting traffic to Elk River from the Orofino side of the Clearwater River. Building a new road all the way around the 53-mile (85 km) long reservoir would not only be expensive, cutting into miles and miles of extremely rocky terrain, but would also be a painful inconvenience for travelers. The only reasonable answer was a bridge somewhere in the middle of the future reservoir. The exact location was based on the topography most suitable for road access as well as for the bridge construction itself.

The 1,550-foot (470 m) long suspension bridge is an attractive wonder, both in size and in appearance. The Dent Bridge was named for Charles and Katherine Dent, who homesteaded the land on the west end of the bridge in 1895.

Coordinates: 46°36′9″N 116°10′42″W / 46.6025°N 116.17833°W / 46.6025; -116.17833