State Highway 36 winds approximately 25 miles from State Highway 101 to Bridgeville. Traveling 10 miles to the East, North or South of Bridgeville, the roads become more narrow, winding and are hazardous and sometimes impassable during inclement weather. Scattered population centers are separated by high mountain passes climbing to about 3,000 feet along the highway.
Many residents live without telephone or electricity at higher elevations off the main highway.
Bridgeville residents travel approximately one hour to Eureka versus two hours to Garberville for major services. Our communities developed around a resource-based lifestyle from the time the area was settled and have a strong attachment to the land. They also predate the logging industry, unlike other local communities which were developed to support the industry. When the lumber mills along this portion of Highway 36 closed approximately 20 years ago, many family wage jobs departed along with those residents. Timber industry changes, welfare reform, increasing Federal, State and County funding cutbacks and our proximity to the Headwaters Forest Controversy have come faster than some citizens can adapt.