For a fourth year in a row, WTOP unearths six more rundown, abandoned highways in Maryland and Virginia. Ramble down these crumbling ghost roads if you dare; most are covered in underbrush and one is even submerged underwater.

A twisty, abandoned section of Route 1 in Stafford County courses through the woods alongside the present-day highway. A nearly century-old bridge still stands above Accokeek Creek. (WTOP/Dave Dildine) WTOP/Dave Dildine An abandoned bridge still marks the spot where Route 1 crossed Accokeek Creek in Stafford County about 80 years ago. The 45 foot-long concrete deck is cloaked in vegetation and debris. (WTOP/Dave Dildine) WTOP/Dave Dildine The old two-lane bridge above Accokeek Creek in Stafford County used concrete through-girder construction. As a through-girder bridge, it could not be widened, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation, which may indicate why the structure was abandoned after only 13 years in use. (WTOP/Dave Dildine) WTOP/Dave Dildine The centenarian Waterloo Bridge dates back to the Hayes administration. The wooden deck and cast iron truss span the Rappahannock River about six miles outside of Warrenton, Virginia. It was closed to traffic in 2014 due to structural concerns. (WTOP/Dave Dildine) WTOP/Dave Dildine The Virginia Department of Transportation is assessing options for the rehabilitation of the aging Waterloo Bridge. The bridge abutment on the Fauquier County side is cast on top of the original stone abutment that was constructed in 1879. The approach spans were reconstructed in 1918. Jeffersonton Road was closed to through traffic when the bridge was deemed unfit for travel. (WTOP/Dave Dildine) WTOP/Dave Dildine The ghost of Liberty Road lurks under the murky waters of Liberty Lake outside of Eldersburg, Maryland. When the reservoir was created, the old highway and the small town of Oakland Mills were submerged. (WTOP/Dave Dildine) WTOP/Dave Dildine A nearly mile-long segment of Old Liberty Road remains permanently submerged under over 100 feet of water. Much of the town of Oakland Mills, Maryland, including its grist mill, were flooded when the North Branch Patapsco River was dammed. (WTOP/Dave Dildine) WTOP/Dave Dildine The stubs of Old Liberty Road can still be seen leading through the woods and into the Liberty Lake. Route 26 carries traffic across the reservoir on a highway bridge not far from the abandoned road. (WTOP/Dave Dildine) WTOP/Dave Dildine Some ghost roads are in plain view, including the abandoned Sykesville Bypass Bridge. The bridge and old roadway run parallel to Route 32 near the South Branch Patapsco River on the south side of town. (WTOP/Dave Dildine) WTOP/Dave Dildine The Sykesville Bypass Bridge is one of only six aluminum bridges ever built in the country and the only one in Maryland.

It is considered a historic bridge in Maryland and is in the offing for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. (WTOP/Dave Dildine) WTOP/Dave Dildine An abandoned section of Gum Spring Road lies in the woods near Route 50 in South Riding, Virginia. A section of the road was severed by private developers during the construction of Stone Springs Hospital and a new residential complex. (WTOP/Dave Dildine) WTOP/Dave Dildine A windy stretch of Melwood Road in Prince George’s County was permanently closed earlier this year. The fate of the road is in the hands of Smith Home Farms Development, which is planning roads for its new subdivision along Cabin Branch. Piles of garbage have been dumped on the wayside over the years. (WTOP/Dave Dildine) WTOP/Dave Dildine ( 1 /12) Share This Gallery: Share on Facebook. Share on Twitter. Share via email. Print.

WASHINGTON ― Nothing is forever, not even highways. As a road network evolves, some of its appendages become defunct and are sloughed into the woods, never to be a traversed again. Over time, most of these bygone byways are erased by suburban sprawl or forces of nature, but vestiges of these ghost roads can live on in the underbrush.

Many thoroughfares in Maryland and Virginia began as deer trails or old Native American paths. As these foot trails morphed into colonial dirt roads and paved motorways, their alignments were straightened and their grades were smoothed to accommodate heavier vehicles with more horsepower.

Look carefully, and you might just spot the old, windy alignment of U.S. Route 1 in Stafford County.

A twisty section of Route 1, originally called Va. Route 31, was straightened through Stafford County during the late 1930s. Fractured segments of the old highway would later become residential streets such as Jumping Branch Road and State Shop Road.

toggle audio on and off change volume download audio

The ghost of a windy U.S. Route 1 in Stafford County. (WTOP/Dave Dildine)

Hidden in the woods not too far from the Rappahannock Regional Jail, an old two-lane bridge above Accokeek Creek marks the spot where Route 1 used to be. Thick vines have latched onto its walls and mature trees grow from its abutments.

The through-girder concrete bridge was built in 1920 at a cost of $8,811.52, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation. The highway department’s archives suggest the derelict structure was abandoned before World War II. Remarkably, it has remained upright and out-of-sight for more than 80 years.

A chunk of Gum Spring Road in South Riding is in an earlier state of decay while facing a similar fate. The new Stone Springs Hospital Center access road absorbed part of Gum Spring Road during construction. The section of the road between the hospital and Arcola was renamed Stone Springs Boulevard.

Loudoun County formally abandoned the leftover stretch of Gum Spring Road near Route 50 by board resolution in February. A severed segment of the road remains behind a stand of trees east of Medical Drive.

While the northern extremity of Gum Spring Road disappeared without much fanfare, the future of another ghost road near Warrenton is the spotlight. The timber-planked Waterloo Bridge along Jeffersonton Road, built during the Rutherford B. Hayes administration, was closed to traffic a few years ago after an inspection revealed severe deterioration of its cast iron supports.

The 139-year-old iron truss bridge is nestled in the heavily-wooded Rappahannock River Valley on the Fauquier-Culpeper County line. Its stone piers are a popular launching point for canoers and kayakers during the summer. It was also known for being a haven for wayward delinquents and a magnet for late-night reckless drivers until it was closed during the winter of 2014.

Some nearby residents want to see the single-lane Waterloo Bridge rehabilitated for vehicular traffic, while others prefer that it serve only pedestrians and recreational users after restoration.

toggle audio on and off change volume download audio

WTOP's Dave Dildine investigates the 139-year-old Waterloo Bridge (WTOP/Dave Dildine)

At a public meeting early in 2017 hosted by VDOT, community members, local officials and other stakeholders weighed in on what should be done with the aging structure: 63 percent favored restoring the bridge for vehicular traffic while 35 percent either opposed the project or wanted a restoration aimed at preserving the bridge for pedestrians and bicyclists.

The structure is eligible to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places. A complete overhaul of the bridge would require a painstaking dismantling of its truss and a re-installation of the structural components, requiring the removal of nearby trees and vegetation.

More From WTOP’s Ghost Roads Series:

There are many examples of ghost road river crossings throughout the region, including Governor’s Bridge Road and Queen Anne’s Bridge Road at the Patuxent River in Maryland and the Goose Creek Bridge in Upperville, Virginia. These landmarks stand silently in the forest, having survived decades of flooding and neglect.

Many of the region’s ghost roads are swamped by undergrowth, but at least one is submerged underwater.

On the outskirts of Eldersburg, Maryland, is a mile-long section of Old Liberty Road that disappears under 100 feet of murky water. When the North Branch Patapsco River was dammed in the early 1950s, the reservoir that formed overtook a section of the main highway, better known as Oakland Mills Road, between Libertytown and Baltimore. The rising water also submerged a significant portion of Oakland Mills, a small mill town.

toggle audio on and off change volume download audio

Old Liberty Road can still be seen outside of Eldersburg, but most of it is out of sight...and underwater. (WTOP/Dave Dildine)

The stubs of the old road can still be seen on both ends of Liberty Lake near where a new highway bridge was constructed after the river valley was flooded.

Not too far from the ghost of Oakland Mills Road, the abandoned Sykesville Bypass towers above the South Branch Patapsco River. On the north end of the two-lane bridge, the year 1962 is etched in a concrete wall. The bridge was opened to traffic in October 1963 and remained in service for four decades.

The bridge’s supports were not made of steel like most bridges; its three girder spans consist of triangular aluminum box beams that cradle a concrete slab deck. It’s a rare breed; it is one of only six aluminum bridges in the United States and the only one constructed in Maryland.

toggle audio on and off change volume download audio

The historic, abandoned Sykesville Bypass Bridge (WTOP/Dave Dildine)

Comparable to the strength of steel, aluminum has excellent corrosion resistance. It is considered a historic Maryland bridge and is eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places.

Despite its robust supports, the bridge was deemed structurally unfit for traffic in 2004 after an inspection revealed deterioration of the concrete bridge piers and smaller steel components.

The Sykesville Bypass Bridge can easily be seen from its replacement — a new section of Route 32 parallels the old ghost road, crossing the river valley and a set of railroad tracks on a new highway bridge.

Aging yet still erect, the bridges that punctuate these ghost roads stand as monuments to the skilled laborers and engineers of generations past. The retired roads that lead up to their abutments are important reminders of how we got to where we are today ― on the roads of decades past.