State Route 3 (SR 3) is a
state highway
A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either ''numbered'' or ''maintained'' by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered by a ...
in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
that serves
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God th ...
and
Siskiyou counties. It runs from
SR 36 north along the shore of
Trinity Lake,
Fort Jones and
Etna. The route then approaches
Yreka
Yreka ( ) is the county seat of Siskiyou County, California, United States, near the Shasta River; the city has an area of about , most of it land. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 7,807, reflecting a meager increase f ...
, intersecting with
Interstate 5
Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels through the states of Californi ...
(I-5), and turns east to
Montague. The road was numbered SR 3 in 1964, and most of it has been part of the state highway system since 1933.
Route description
SR 3 begins at the junction with
SR 36 south of the town of
Peanut
The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small an ...
in
Trinity County. SR 3 is also known as Bramlot Road from its southern terminus to
Hayfork. This stretch of road through the
Shasta-Trinity National Forest parallels the
Hayfork River. Once SR 3 reaches the town of Hayfork, it travels along Hyampom Road east and snakes through the mountains to
Douglas City and the junction with
SR 299. From there, SR 3 runs concurrently with SR 299 north to the town of
Weaverville.
SR 3 then separates from SR 299, providing access to the
Whiskeytown-Shasta-Trinity National Recreation Area and
Trinity Dam
Trinity Dam is an earthfill dam on the Trinity River located about northeast of Weaverville, California in the United States. The dam was completed in the early 1960s as part of the federal Central Valley Project to provide irrigation water to ...
along
Lewiston Lake
Lewiston Lake is a reservoir impounded by Lewiston Dam on the Trinity River, in Trinity County, California.
Geography
Lewiston Lake is near the towns of Weaverville and Lewiston in Trinity County, California.
It is used for transbasin diver ...
.
SR 3 passes through the towns of
Covington Mill,
Trinity Center, and
Wyntoon before paralleling the
Trinity River and
Trinity Mountains as Weaverville-Scott Mountain Road and crossing the
Scott Mountains and the
Pacific Crest Trail
The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), officially designated as the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail, is a long-distance hiking and equestrian trail closely aligned with the highest portion of the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges, which lie ...
into
Siskiyou County.
In Siskiyou County, SR 3 passes through
Callahan,
Etna,
Greenview, and
Fort Jones as it turns northeast to intersect with
Interstate 5
Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels through the states of Californi ...
in
Yreka
Yreka ( ) is the county seat of Siskiyou County, California, United States, near the Shasta River; the city has an area of about , most of it land. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 7,807, reflecting a meager increase f ...
. At this point,
SR 263 continues in the northerly direction towards
SR 96; SR 3 turns east to its northern terminus in the incorporated city of
Montague.
SR 3 is part of the
California Freeway and Expressway System
The California Freeway and Expressway System is a system of existing or planned freeways and expressways in the U.S. state of California. It encompasses both State highways and federal highways in California. It is defined by Article 2 (comme ...
,
and a portion near the northern terminus is part of the
National Highway System,
a network of highways that are considered essential to the country's economy, defense, and mobility by the
Federal Highway Administration
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is a division of the United States Department of Transportation that specializes in highway transportation. The agency's major activities are grouped into two programs, the Federal-aid Highway Program ...
.
SR 3 is eligible to be included in the
State Scenic Highway System,
and is officially designated as a scenic highway by the
California Department of Transportation
The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is an executive department of the U.S. state of California. The department is part of the cabinet-level California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA). Caltrans is headquartered in Sacram ...
for its entire length,
meaning that it is a substantial section of highway passing through a "memorable landscape" with no "visual intrusions", where the potential designation has gained popular favor with the community.
The segment of SR 3 from Weaverville to Gazelle Callahan Road forms part of the Trinity Heritage Scenic Byway, a
National Forest Scenic Byway
The National Forest Scenic Byways are roads that have been designated by the U.S. Forest Service as scenic byways. Many are also National Scenic Byways (NSB). The program was initiated in 1987.
__TOC__
List
The following roadways were listed by t ...
.
In 2014, SR 3 had an
annual average daily traffic
Annual average daily traffic, abbreviated AADT, is a measure used primarily in transportation planning, transportation engineering and retail location selection. Traditionally, it is the total volume of vehicle traffic of a highway or road for a ...
(AADT) of 135 at U.S. Forest Service Road, and 10,000 at Moonlit Oaks Avenue, the latter of which was the highest AADT for the highway.
History
The short piece from
SR 36 north to
Peanut
The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small an ...
was added to the state highway system in 1907 as part of the
Peanut Road, which became
Route 35 in 1917. Route 35 was extended north from Peanut to
Route 20 (
SR 299) near
Douglas City in 1933, and simultaneously a new Route 82 was created, running from
Route 3 (
I-5
Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels through the states of Californi ...
) in the
Yreka
Yreka ( ) is the county seat of Siskiyou County, California, United States, near the Shasta River; the city has an area of about , most of it land. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 7,807, reflecting a meager increase f ...
area southwest to
Etna and east to
Montague. The gap between Douglas City and Etna was filled in 1959 with an extension of Route 82 south to Route 20 near
Weaverville; at the same time, the portion between Weaverville and Yreka was added to the
California Freeway and Expressway System
The California Freeway and Expressway System is a system of existing or planned freeways and expressways in the U.S. state of California. It encompasses both State highways and federal highways in California. It is defined by Article 2 (comme ...
, which identifies the main routes of transportation in the state of California. The State Route 3 designation was applied to the Peanut-Montague roadway in the
1964 renumbering. The
overlap
Overlap may refer to:
* In set theory, an overlap of elements shared between sets is called an intersection, as in a Venn diagram.
* In music theory, overlap is a synonym for reinterpretation of a chord at the boundary of two musical phrases
* O ...
with temporary
I-5
Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels through the states of Californi ...
(along the portion where SR 3 runs
concurrently with Interstate 5 today) near Yreka was removed when the new I-5 bypass was built; the legislative definition was updated to reflect this in 1974, soon after the building of the bypass.
[: "Route 3 is from: ...(b) Route 299 near Weaverville to Montague via Main Street in Yreka."]
Major intersections
See also
*
References
External links
California @ AARoads.com – State Route 3Caltrans: Route 3 highway conditions
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State Route 003
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Klamath Mountains
Trinity Mountains (California)
Weaverville, California
Yreka, California