Hell's Gate

As Halloween approaches I thought it would be appropriate to post a picture of the Hell's Gate bridge, also located in Astoria, Queens. The bridge got it's name from Hell Gate, the small strait of water beneath it that connects Randall's Island with Astoria. An interesting fact is that the name Hell's Gate has nothing to do with the deadly currents of the East River (as I had always thought) but actually came from the dutch Hellegat which is supposed to mean "Bright Passage" (does it?). Also, the bridge is only for passing of the Amtrak railroads and no cars ever pass the bridge, therefore it extends past the river and into Astoria as another elevated train track. In fact, it even crosses the N subway line at Ditmars Blvd. train station.