At least one medium sized bridge in the canyon burned several years ago due to a fire that started near the highway and burned up the hill.
The bottom end of the line is/was used for car storage, as is the line that goes to the east out of Lewiston up the river (railroad is something like Bountiful and Craig Mountain?). Great Northwest (WATCO) actively runs the line from Lewiston down the river to interchange.
Both UP and NP(BN) owned the Camas Prairie Railroad, and it even had a couple shortlines off of it and long ago some logging lines, and had its own rotary snow plow. The implosion of the US lumber industry killed much of the traffic, and the grain (mostly wheat) quickly diverted to river barge. The last big push to improve the river flood control/power/navigation allowed barges clear into Lewiston/Clarkston up the Clearwater River.Like so many lines in the west, those factors left the railroads (Class 1 or shortline) with not enough traffic to pay for often expensive track/bridge/tunnel upkeep.
Consider Walla Walla, WA - at one point the town had both UP and NP/BN coming into town and the region, plus the NP bought the Walla Walla Valley (originally the regional trolley/interurban line). Traffic was grain, lumber, sugar beets, fresh fruit and vegetables. Now, no lumber mills left, all the regions sugar beet mills are closed, some fresh fruit and vegetables still grown but shifting over to a wine growing region. WWV gone in the early 80s, BN pulled out too but kept trackage rights. Leased to a shortline, who abandoned on line which UP sold to local Port District for $1. WATCO walked away from remaining operation last year. Local shortline trying to make a go with a few customers, piss poor track with lots of 100+ year old rail. UP won't cooperate to run a grain shuttle to the barge terminal on the river a couple miles out of their interchange yard.
Modern railroading often makes no sense or cents!
