Bagley Lost Highway
There’s an abandoned stretch of road sandwiched between US Highway 2 and Airport Drive on the outskirts of Bagley, Minnesota. A visitor to this website suggested this place to us after seeing our post on the lost highway in what was once McHugh, Minnesota, near Detroit Lakes.
Based on the map, it looks like US Highway 2 was realigned at some point, leaving this stretch of highway abandoned. If someone knows the details, please leave a comment.
This abandoned road stretches about six-tenths of a mile and parallels the railroad line.
In North Dakota, we photographed another lost highway, created by a man-made flood.
Photos by Troy Larson, copyright Sonic Tremor Media
20 thoughts on “Bagley Lost Highway”
Very cool. Thanks.
It’s the old highway. I’ve been told that it’s the remnants from when it was a two lane but it sure is narrow. There’s almost two miles of it a bit over ten miles east of there.
https://www.google.com/maps/dir//U.S.+2,+Solway,+MN+56678/@47.5183841,-95.15587,17455m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m8!4m7!1m0!1m5!1m1!1s0x52b83b615f89c2bf:0x175481641660e126!2m2!1d-95.0858299!2d47.5182895
Very interesting, Doc. Thanks for the tip. I also wondered whether it was the highway since there’s no remnant of painted lines anywhere.
I looked at the section near Solway on Google Earth and it looks like you can drive right onto it. Is it fenced?
It should be wide open. Looks like it’s probably on a mixture private, BNSF Railroad, and Norboard (wood mill) property. I highly doubt anyone would care if you went there to photograph it.
That section near Solway has been use to store wood for norboard in the past.
I was always told it was the “old airport road”.
Yes it’s the old hi way two before it was four lane. My dad used to drive semi truck on this road hauling grain and said more then once that the trucks mirrors would hit another trucks mirrors when meeting them. There is a section of this road by Norbord just west of Wilton
My uncle owns a chunk of it east of solway.
Beautiful! I love stretches of old abandoned roadway, there’s a certain ghostly beauty to them. There’s a stretch of old highway 32 north of Twin Valley MN that I’d love to photograph and post sometime.
That was Highway two. I think it was in the early 70s when they made that section of it four-lane. In that area the highway had to be moved a bit north because of a swampy area right next to the road.
Dumpster Rd lol
As everyone has stated this was the old Highway 2 prior to the four lane was put in. This stretch by Bagley doubled as a drag strip for us when we were teenagers. That is until the local police got onto us and had a patrol car waiting for us on the east end with no escape route. The east end still hooked up to the four lane at that time. Ah memories!!
It’s true. It’s the old highway 2 which would run from East grand forks all the way to Duluth Minnesota Build the 4 lane that runs beside it and just closed that stretch off. We use to ride it in to cass lake minnesota
Hwy two goes all the way to the west coast.
We used to set minnow traps at creek crossings on that stretch. Now it gets used to stack pulpwood and railroad ties before spring road restrictions.
I notice it, but never take the time to explore it since I assume its gone back to private ownership.
Is anyone familiar with the stretches of abandoned highway along Highway 83 (which goes North/South across the entire US and into Canada and Mexico, I believe)?
There are sections of abandoned MN 89. One is just south of the reservation that went next to Island Lake fire hall. I played softball by the fire hall a few times and always wanted to drive that stretch, but never have.
My family lived by the airport in the late 70’s (The new highway was already there).
Lovely and Lonely.
I am pretty sure that is part of the old highway 2 between Bemidji and Bagley Minnesota. There is a patch just west of Bemdji that I know was old highway 2!