To walk a bridge, a day trip....

[Sunset Lady 6]

Well actually it was only a few hours trip,

 

Hi everyone, I debated on weather or not to post this, since it may not be all that interesting, but here goes anyway.  In Louisville, Ky  they have recently renovated and opened an old railroad bridge that was actually built in 1895, they have been working on converting it into a pedestrian bridge for the last several years.

The renovation on the Ky side was completed and opened in February of this year.  Eventually walkers will be able to walk all the way across the Ohio River and exit on the Indiana side. They will be able to shop and eat at several new restaurants.  Right now Indiana is still completing the ramp to exit on their side.

 

Here is the link to the information:   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Four_Bridge

 

Well  hubby and I finally were able to make the trip down to walk the bridge across the river. We did this a few months ago.I really enjoyed the whole experience, the scenery was great and it was a very peaceful walk. And it was very neat to walk on the bridge.

Lets start by showing you the city of Louisville

 

Next is Louisville and the auto bridge named after Pres. JFK

The Kennedy Bridge

 

 

Now to the Big Four Bridge for a nice long walk. The ramp is wrapped around to accommadate wheelchair use and also bicyclists. It is quite a distance to actually get to the bridge itself.

 

 

 

 

We have finally made it to the top and onto the bridge.

 

 

The view from the bridge.

 

 

This picture shows a Tumbleweed Mexican restaurant with dock moorings for boats,for those who want to stop in for dinner. There is also a marina further back that stretch of river. Those are barges that are tied up on the shore, not sure why they are there. If you look closely in the bottom of this next picture there is one barge that appears to be sinking.

 

 

More views.

In this picture you can see cranes and a working barge. They are just beginning to build a new bridge across the Ohio River. Louisville has wanted to build  a new bridge for many many years, but there wasn't any funding for it. Somehow there is now funding for two new bridges. Another new one is also starting further east down the river. Here is a webcam of that project.

http://eastendcrossing.com/project-over ... os-videos/

 

 

 

And the last picture that I have.

 

 

What a view, huh!!  Well I enjoyed the few hours that we were there, I think hubby was glad that I now would leave him alone, since he finally took me to see it.   Next trip there. we will have to go back when we can actually go over into Indiana and shop, lol !! That should be sometime next year.

 

That's all folks 

 

Saundra

[CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547]

How interesting!  Great views.  Thanks for posting!

[PureTcrazy...rita 380]

Awesome! Thanks for sharing!

[dblr....Rennie 224]

Looks neat might have to put this as a stop on one of our trips, always looking for different things to see and do.

[AC in A2......Aaron 693]

It is a nice view.

Thanks for sharing your trip!

[h2odivers...Ray 952]

Great view and pictures. Thanks for sharing.

[Beckers 1,136]

That's awesome! Thanks for sharing! I'm not a fan of bridges, not sure I would be willing to walk on one!

[Sunset Lady 6]

Thanks everybody, I am glad you enjoyed the pictures.  I had been looking forward to walking across the bridge ever since they started renovations a couple of years ago. I enjoy being around boats and water, (we also own a boat) so it was a real treat to be there to enjoy the view and a few boats and barges going under it. We saw several people sitting on the benches reading the daily news paper and enjoying the day.

 

Beckers, It felt pretty sturdy with the concrete sections, although there was about a 3 inch gap on the sides that you could look down and see the water underneath.  I will admit that was a little scary, but overall it was a great view.

But for those that don't like bridges I can understand it, and you probably wouldn't enjoy this one : )

[Beckers 1,136]

It's all my parents' fault. When we were little they took us somewhere that had a mile high bridge that was one that shook and they pushed me across both ways and I was having a cow. I'm still traumatized. Now I have to google and see where it was.

[Beckers 1,136]

Mom thinks it was Grandfather mountain in NC.

[CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547]

Mom thinks it was Grandfather mountain in NC.

 

That's just what I was going to guess.  It's a mile-high swinging bridge.  I won't walk across it.  I will barely come out of the building.

[Travisma 1,317]

They did the same to an old railroad bridge over the Hudson River at Poughkeepsie a few years ago. It has been a huge success. New business's have opened nearby, parks have opened and been expanded, and now they are building an elevator to make it easier for handicapped users to get to the walkway. They have a lot of events on and around it. Some you have to enter drawings to get access to the bridge because it's so popular. Omaha built a new walkway across the Missouri River to Council Bluffs Iowa. people use it year round even in the snow.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Saundra-

 

Thanks for sharing your photos.  I love trip reports-even short ones-from places I've never been that show things I've never heard of.

 

What a cool way of preserving a piece of history.  Imagine what it took to build a bridge like this in 1895.  I would love to see it.

 

I hope you go back and give us an update when it's done!

 

TCD

[Sunset Lady 6]

They did the same to an old railroad bridge over the Hudson River at Poughkeepsie a few years ago. It has been a huge success. New business's have opened nearby, parks have opened and been expanded, and now they are building an elevator to make it easier for handicapped users to get to the walkway. They have a lot of events on and around it. Some you have to enter drawings to get access to the bridge because it's so popular. Omaha built a new walkway across the Missouri River to Council Bluffs Iowa. people use it year round even in the snow.

Yes it is the same here with special events,it is mostly events that are for charity. I think they had the Komen Relay for life there as well. They lined the whole bridge with the memorial luminaries. I would not be surprised if they also install an elevator at some point.

[Sunset Lady 6]

Saundra-

 

Thanks for sharing your photos.  I love trip reports-even short ones-from places I've never been that show things I've never heard of.

 

What a cool way of preserving a piece of history.  Imagine what it took to build a bridge like this in 1895.  I would love to see it.

 

I hope you go back and give us an update when it's done!

 

TCD

TCD

I am glad you enjoyed the photos.  I agree it is rather cool that the bridge was first built in 1895, I find it very interesting. It must have took them a long time to build it with the tools that were available to them in that time period.

I will update with more photos next year.

[Sunset Lady 6]

It's all my parents' fault. When we were little they took us somewhere that had a mile high bridge that was one that shook and they pushed me across both ways and I was having a cow. I'm still traumatized. Now I have to google and see where it was.

Yep, I can understand not liking bridges if they are not very sturdy.