Historic Summit Tunnel — Attraction in Truckee

A different walk through history. This hike follows the old rail bed of the transcontinental railroad. You can walk through a tunnel and see retaining walls all built by the Chinese laborers. Downhill from the rail bed are petroglyphs on some rocks (look hard, they're faded) and the original dirt track of the Lincoln Highway with a concrete sign post just off the current highway. Near the Chinese Wall is an area favored by rock climbers. The rail bed winds through old snow sheds and the view of Donner Lake is spectacular. A flash light is recommended, especially for tunnel #6, "The Chinese Tunnel". It gets rather dark in the middle. Old rail bed is rocky in the tunnels/sheds, smooth dirt between. Certain times of the year be prepared to encounter cold temperatures, water, ice, and or snow, especially in the tunnels/snow sheds. Be aware that the rail beds are still owned by Union Pacific and therefore on private property but so far they have been rather tolerant of the public exploring the sheds. There is some interesting graffiti art in the snow sheds. There is also some graffiti in the Chinese Tunnel which seems a sacrilege considering what it took for the laborers to hand drill that tunnel. Look for signage along the road leading to and from the tunnels that further explain the history of the area. Parking is in a dirt lot across from Donner Summit Ski Resort. Walk past the gate arms into Tunnel 6 to...

The Transcontinental Railroad connecting California with the eastern states was completed in 1869. The most difficult challenge in its construction was the crossing of the Sierra over 7,056-foot Donner Pass. The 1,659-foot long Summit Tunnel in combination with four other tunnels, miles of snow sheds, and a pair of Chinese Walls proved an engineering and construction challenge for the Central Pacific Railroad.

Today much of the original route surveyed by Chief Engineer Theodore D. Judah is still in use. The Summit Tunnel has been replaced by a 10,322-foot tunnel known as The Big Hole, which passes beneath Mt. Judah about a mile south of Donner Pass. Ownership of the railroad passed to the Southern Pacific Railroad and then in 1996 to the current owner, Union Pacific Railroad.

Today, nearly 150 years after its completion, the transcontinental railroad still attracts a lot of interest. Although some sections of the original route have been improved with new tunnels and realigned tracks, the basic route is till the same as it was back in 1866. Trains still climb the steep mountainsides, fight their way through winter snow, and roll down the long,...

Awesome adventure. Not a hard "hike". It's a pretty flat walk but the tiny rocks in the trail of the tunnels definitely test your stabilizing muscles a bit! Bring a sweater as well because the tunnels catch wind (which was a nice change to the heat). Beautiful art, and super cool to see the history and craftsmanship of the tunnels. Definitely a unique experience. Saw a lot of families with small children and people walking dogs, so very family friendly. There ARE several ways to enter, some look harder than other's depending on your health and hiking skill ability. Our team entered through a parking lot taking you directly into the tunnels. If walking with elderly, small children or have varying physical abilities, that entrance may be the best option to ensure inclusiveness for your group. Otherwise, if looking to burn some extra calories and hike for health and challenge the other entrenched seem fine and not super difficult, either. We came for the tunnels but there were plenty of trails that looked alluring. We didn't adventure but will be back to explore...