Sunset Highway (Oregon)
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The Sunset Highway No. 47 (see Oregon highways and routes), in the state of Oregon, is an official designation for the portion of U.S. Route 26 between its western terminus, south of Seaside, and the interchange with Interstate 405 in downtown Portland. The highway was officially named January 17, 1946 for the US 41st Infantry Division of the United States Army, also known as the "Sunset Division"[1]. Many people may think it received its name because it stretches towards the sunset from Portland. Some local historians think that it was more than a coincidence that a logging complex in western Washington County, near the route of US 26, was called Sunset Camp many years before the highway was built.[citation needed]
The western terminus of the highway (and of US 26) is at an interchange with U.S. Route 101 between Seaside and Cannon Beach. The highway heads east from there through the Oregon Coast Range, passing through the valleys of the Necanicum and Nehalem rivers. It then crosses over the coast ranges, where it passes through the Dennis L. Edwards Tunnel, descending into the Tualatin Valley, into the community of Banks[2].
East of Banks, the highway merges with Oregon Route 6 and becomes a freeway, which passes through the high-tech regions of Washington County. The freeway enters the Portland metropolitan area in the northeast corner of Hillsboro, then passes through the northern part of the city of Beaverton and the communities of Cedar Hills and Cedar Mill near the intersection with the northern terminus of Oregon Route 217. Also at this point, MAX Light Rail is adjacent on the north side of the highway for nearly two miles until it submerges into Robertson Tunnel.
The highway enters the Portland city limits near the Sylvan neighborhood, where it is also joined by Oregon Route 8; east of here the highway descends a steep grade through a canyon which penetrates Portland's West Hills; this stretch of the Sunset is coincident with Canyon Road. The highway skirts the southern edge of Portland's Washington Park, providing access to the Oregon Zoo and other attractions. At the bottom of the grade, the highway passes through the Vista Ridge Tunnel into downtown Portland. Immediately east of the tunnel is an interchange with I-405; this interchange is the end of the Sunset Highway. US 26 continues past from there; briefly sharing an alignment with I-405 before crossing the Willamette River on the Ross Island Bridge.
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