If you’ve been following along, you may know that for the 4th of July weekend this year, we decided to do some local exploring. The county north of us is known for its covered bridges and even has a fall festival dedicated to them. We decided that we would visit all 19 of the Ashtabula County covered bridges over the course of the weekend. We started with the six bridges along Route 7 as we made our way north to Conneaut, Ohio. If you are coming from Youngstown or Pittsburgh, Route 7 is the first exit in Ohio off I-80. If you are coming from Erie, you could reverse the beginning of our tour as Route 7 is the first exit in Ohio from I-90, as well.
The second part of our tour started with lunch in the historic Ashtabula Harbor by the drawbridge, followed by eight covered bridges in the center of the county. These eight bridges are located in Sheffield and Plymouth townships, Ashtabula, and Jefferson. If you are following the official map, they are bridges 9-14 and 1-2 . The official covered bridge driving tour of Ashtabula County starts in Jefferson, the county seat.
The Bridges of Ashtabula County
I explained why the bridges were covered in part 1 and discussed the different types (there are five different types in the county) as we came across the different bridges. If you are interested, here’s the link to Part 1 of our tour of our covered bridge tour. Consequently, our story picks up again with lunch.
Lunch
Ashtabula Harbor
While there is no covered bridge in the harbor, it’s undoubtedly a great place to stop for lunch. There are several good restaurants to choose from, and you can watch the drawbridge open and close on the hour and half-hour. We picked Briquettes Smokehouse with a view of the boats and the bridge. Most importantly, the food was delicious.
Back to our covered bridge tour
Smolen-Gulf Bridge
The first covered bridge we visited after lunch is the longest bridge in the United States at 613 feet long. Built in 2008 on State Road in Ashtabula, the Smolen-Gulf Bridge (#11 on the map) stands 93 feet about the Ashtabula River. It’s a Pratt truss bridge, like the Caine Road bridge from the first part of our tour and can carry full legal-load traffic, including tractor trailers. There are walkways for pedestrians on both sides of the road; however the sidewalk does not extend to the parking area. The best place to park is at Indian Trails Park nearby. Picnic tables and an informational pavilion are located at the parking lot at the top of the hill.
Riverview Bridge
Don’t forget to drive down into Indian Trails Park once you’ve gotten a glimpse of the Smolen-Gulf Bridge from the top of the hill. At the bottom, you’ll find restrooms (a rarity on the Ashtabula County covered bridge tour), walking paths, bike path, and more. The Riverview Covered Pedestrian Bridge (#12 on the official map) is an easy walk from the parking area. This 150 foot bridge was built in 2016. Its Pratt Truss arch design is similar to the Smolen-Gulf Bridge above.
Olin Covered Bridge
Our next bridge on our list was # 10, the Olin Covered Bridge. This bridge, unlike most of the others, is named for a family instead of the road it’s on. Olin Covered Bridge is on Dewey Road, next to the Olin family farm–the Olins have owned the property next to the bridge since it was built in 1873.
This secluded Plymouth township bridge is surrounded by private property. Like many of the earlier bridges, this bridge is a Town Lattice design. It is 115 feet long and was renovated in the early 1990s. I would love to live near this bridge due to the very peaceful, wooded setting.
Benetka Road Covered Bridge
After leaving the Olin Bridge, we headed to Bridge #9, the Benetka Road bridge, in Sheffield Township. This bridge was built circa 1900, making it a century bridge, as well. It’s a 138 foot Town Lattice Bridge; however an arch was added in 1985 when it was renovated. The new arch is 9 inches wide and 28 inches thick.
Giddings Road Covered Bridge
Our fifth covered bridge of the afternoon was the Giddings Road Bridge in Jefferson. One of the newer bridges, workers built this 107 foot Pratt Truss bridge in 1995 across Mill Creek. However, I would not choose the Giddings Bridge as one of my favorites. In my opinion, it didn’t seem to have the character of the older bridges, and it reminded me of a barn or a shed.
Doyle Road Covered Bridge
The next bridge we visited was #14 on the list and is actually on the South & Western portion of the official Ashtabula County Covered Bridge Tour. However, we decided to visit Doyle Bridge on the first day instead of waiting.
The Doyle Road Covered Bridge is one of the older bridges in the county. Built in 1868, the Doyle Road Covered Bridge spans Mill Creek. The Doyle Bridge is a 94 foot long Town Lattice Bridge. However, a laminated arch was added in the 1980s when it was renovated, similar to the one added to the Benetka Road Bridge. We noticed that this bridge (and a few others) had smoke detectors. It also had Christmas lights attached–we may have to visit again next December to see it lit up.
Netcher Road Covered Bridge
The Netcher Road Covered Bridge is also in Jefferson. Like the Doyle and Giddings Bridges, it spans Mill Creek, a tributary of the Grand River. The Netcher Road bridge opened in 1999 and is #1 on the official tour. It has a timber arch with inverted Haupt trusses. The designers of this 110 foot bridge called it a Neo-Victorian design. The red siding and white trim make it stand out from the other bridges on the tour.
South Denmark Covered Bridge
We visited the South Denmark Covered Bridge (#2 on the map) last before heading home for the evening. The South Denmark Bridge was built in 1890 and is a Town Lattice bridge. You can still drive through it even though the main road has bypassed the bridge since 1975. This bridge is 81 feet long and crosses Mill Creek in Jefferson.
Final Thoughts on Our Ashtabula County Covered Bridge Tour
In short, we were able to easily visit 14 of the 19 covered bridges in Ashtabula County. We broke the trip into two sections–part one (before lunch) covered the bridges within five miles of Route 7 (Conneaut and south) and part two (after lunch) from Ashtabula to Jefferson. If you like history and pastoral scenery, this is a fun driving tour. In addition, don’t wash your car ahead of time–there are more dirt roads in Ashtabula County than I realized.
Alternatively, if you don’t want to have lunch at a restaurant, picnic tables and a restroom were available at Indian Trails Park near the Smolen-Gulf and Riverview Bridges. In addition, the Graham Road bridge in Pierpont also has a picnic table inside. However, there are no restrooms at that location. As a rule, you should take along basic road trip essentials–it’s always better to be safe than sorry.
Overall, we had a fun day. It was interesting to visit local places that we’d never taken the time to explore. If you’d like to continue with this virtual tour, Part three, the South & Western Tour with the last five bridges in Ashtabula County, is now posted. You can visit the final installment of our covered bridge tour here. 
Looks like lots of fun! Bridges seem a very curious point of interest to me
This series makes me want to get out and explore my little corner of the globe for covered bridges now! This is such a perfect way to get out right now too, while still being socially distant. My husband and I have been looking for options like that more these days, just to get out of the house but be able to site-see from the comfort of our truck too.
Such a beautiful trip and so very different.I have never done a bridge tour like this and looks a fabulous idea with such wonderful sights.Love the thought of going through the 613 feet long Smolen-Gulf Bridge.
What a wonderful adventure! I love all the photos, you were lucky to have amazing weather.
The drawbridge looks super cool, they are not common where I live.
I fell in love with covered bridges when I first watched The Bridges of Madison County, but never knew why they’re covered (peeked at Part 1). Thanks for the beautiful tour!
Wow, love these stunning pictures. The bridges are so beautiful, I must say.
These bridges are amazing! Very instagram-worthy or good for a family photoshoot! It is always awesome to view cool things on roadtrips!
Oh wow, there are so many beautiful covered bridges that I wasn’t aware of. I was impressed during part 1, but part 2 takes it to a whole new level. Incredible! I really would love to visit and see them all myself when the border opens back up again. Ohio is just a short road-trip away (we drove there to adopt our boy Indiana).
I think I have actually seen the bridges in Ohio but it was a long time ago, while visiting family.
This is such a great quarantine activity! Thanks for sharing and taking great pics!
What a fascinating tour to take. I love discovering things like this and covered bridges can be located in some really beautiful locations where you can take in the nature surrounding you. Totally agree with you that the older bridges hold so much more interest and character and it was also interesting to read that many bridges also have smoke detectors now.
Love road trips! With today’s limitations on travel, we all need to jump in the car and have some fun family time. You’re fortunate to have so many lovely areas nearby.
Sounds like a great idea to have a road trip during these times. These bridges look nice. The idea of having lunch on picnic tables too sounds fun.
You’ve really made me want to travel! Some great photos, I especially like the look of the Smolen-Gulf Bridge.
Amazing, it is kind of a virtual.tour. Thanks for sharing.
Even a bridge can have a history, long or short. I see it here in Italy not the new Genoa bridge … your blog post fascinated me!
Wow so much history and information here for sure…I loved ready this and will be sending this onto my mum x
Wow! These bridges are so beautiful! Thank you so much for that virtual tour. I had no idea there could be so many covered bridges in a county. Brilliant!
I enjoyed part one, and I love part 2! I would love to go on these bridge tours one day. I love the designs.- They are all unique! Thanks for sharing.
Beautiful! We have an upcoming trip that we’ll need to drive through Ohio. We’re always looking for scenic places to stop!
Great informational travel post! Love reading about places you visit and your take on each. You write well and beautifully! Thanks for sharing!
Love reading your post dear, you have covered so many beautiful places! Have added so many places to my travel list after reading your post♥️
I would love to see all of these bridges. Covered bridges have such a unique flavor to them. They’re so beautiful, and you can really feel the history behind them.
I’m pretty shocked that there are even enough covered bridges to do a full tour, but I guess that’s the joy of discovery, huh?
There are 19 in Ashtabula County alone. Pennsylvania has the most covered bridges of any state with 213. Ohio, the home of Ashtabula County, is second with 148. Believe it or not, the county with the most covered bridges in the United States is Parke County, Indiana, with 31.