Signed County Route J18 and pre-1937 CA 140

[Max Rockatansky]

After crossing the Diablos via CA 130 and the implied route to I-5 I dipped down to J18:

https://flic.kr/s/aHsksii61t

The signage on J18 is okay but really lacking from Hills Ferry Road to River Road.  There is an oddity where J18 is signed briefly on CA 165 which I don't believe I've ever seen elsewhere with a Signed County Route.   The real jem on the route is the 1910 Merced River Bridge near the junction with the San Joaquin River.  The Merced River Bridge is in terrible shape with holes in the bridge deck and heavy vandalism but still a nice find on the side of River Road.

[Max Rockatansky]

Turns out J18 is far more significant than I originally thought and is the pre-1937 alignment of CA 140 west of US 99.  So that little 1910 Merced Bridge turned out to be an old classic from the ancient signed state highway era:

http://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/01/signed-county-route-j18.html