A Love of Bridges, Part 1: An Introduction Putting Things in Their Proper Perspective; Aerial Lift Bridge, Duluth, Minnesota, USA (1905; converted to its current form in 1930)
Facing east-northeastward at the northernmost section of Minnesota Point. Beyond it stretches the mythic expanse of Lake Superior, today in an unusually beatific mood. Mariners, be not deceived.
The bridge with its towers, high trussed frame, and lake-facing jetties is visible at left, between the sun shimmers on lake and harbor.
This shot, like two others posted recently, was taken from Enger Tower. It puts one of my favorite bridges in its proper natural context: as one small, manmade section of the great baymouth bar that protects the harbors of Duluth and Superior, Wisconsin. For a discussion of this striking coastal landform, see "Geology of Minnesota's North Shore, Part 1."
Of course, if you drive directly up to the bridge on Duluth's Lake Avenue, it looks much more imposing than it does here. In fact, it's such a lovely piece of civil engineering that it's worth a trip from the antipodes just to see it. At least if you're a pontiphiliac. And the best time to walk or drive across it is about fifteen minutes after sunset, when its lights have winked on and the water around it still holds the last crepuscular glow of the fading sky.
Following photos of this set will demonstrate that this span is a vertical-lift bridge. This fairly uncommon design features a moveable central roadway section that is hoisted, still in its usual horizontal orientation, almost all the way up its towers' height, to provide clearance for vessels large and small.
However, until it was refitted in 1929 and 1930, the Aerial Lift Bridge had an even stranger way of doing its duty. For it was a transporter bridge that had a large gondola, suspended by cables attached to the frame overhead. For a quarter of a century the gondola faithfully carried countless loads of people and vehicles from one side of the channel to the other. Each one-way trip took about a minute.
The other photos and descriptions of this series can be found in my Love of Bridges album.
A Love of Bridges, Part 1: An Introduction Putting Things in Their Proper Perspective; Aerial Lift Bridge, Duluth, Minnesota, USA (1905; converted to its current form in 1930)
Facing east-northeastward at the northernmost section of Minnesota Point. Beyond it stretches the mythic expanse of Lake Superior, today in an unusually beatific mood. Mariners, be not deceived.
The bridge with its towers, high trussed frame, and lake-facing jetties is visible at left, between the sun shimmers on lake and harbor.
This shot, like two others posted recently, was taken from Enger Tower. It puts one of my favorite bridges in its proper natural context: as one small, manmade section of the great baymouth bar that protects the harbors of Duluth and Superior, Wisconsin. For a discussion of this striking coastal landform, see "Geology of Minnesota's North Shore, Part 1."
Of course, if you drive directly up to the bridge on Duluth's Lake Avenue, it looks much more imposing than it does here. In fact, it's such a lovely piece of civil engineering that it's worth a trip from the antipodes just to see it. At least if you're a pontiphiliac. And the best time to walk or drive across it is about fifteen minutes after sunset, when its lights have winked on and the water around it still holds the last crepuscular glow of the fading sky.
Following photos of this set will demonstrate that this span is a vertical-lift bridge. This fairly uncommon design features a moveable central roadway section that is hoisted, still in its usual horizontal orientation, almost all the way up its towers' height, to provide clearance for vessels large and small.
However, until it was refitted in 1929 and 1930, the Aerial Lift Bridge had an even stranger way of doing its duty. For it was a transporter bridge that had a large gondola, suspended by cables attached to the frame overhead. For a quarter of a century the gondola faithfully carried countless loads of people and vehicles from one side of the channel to the other. Each one-way trip took about a minute.
The other photos and descriptions of this series can be found in my Love of Bridges album.