Hello friends and Hivers, today I put my entry into the #POBPhotocontest hosted by @friendlymoose It's been awhile since I've participated here but bridges are a cool subject to read and write about so here I am again. I'm late to participate but if you have time before 8 p.m. CEST Sunday you too can participate by clicking here.
I share with you today a pedestrian bridge in my locale named the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge. Constructed in 2008, this bridge is 2300 feet long and has a unique curvy design to it. It connects two cities in two different states (Council Bluffs, Iowa & Omaha, Nebraska).
Two 203 feet high twin pylons anchor it and 80 steel cables support the deck. The bridge's curvilinear S-shaped design reflects the grace and power of the Missouri River below. So yesterday I visited it and decided to walk on it despite it being a windy cold day at 18 ° F (- 8 ° C). I didn't exactly dress it for so I walked a little faster than I normally would with my hands in my hooded sweatshirt.
Some simple rules to abide by if you want to enjoy the bridge. The rule that stuck out to me was the use caution during inclement weather. We got a dusting of snow that morning so much of the bridge had snow on it. No worries I avoided walking in snow when I could. There was only a handful of crazy people on it today. I seen one cyclists and less than a dozen people walking.
I started on the Iowa side where there is a nice sized park and the start of some walking trails. The bridge has a slight up hill climb to it starting on this side. The Nebraska side does too but not as much. Walking it from this side I had the wind in my face. It was a little bit more comfortable on the walk back with the wind on my back and walking mostly on a decline.
Once about half away across the bridge I ran across this information boards. The first two our historic information on the cultures from the past that used the river and how the river has changed due to modern technology through the use of damns. The last photo lists who was all involved in making the bridge construction possible. From both of the city's leadership, the project manager, the contractor, design engineer to those that were funding partners.
It's a fact that bridges connect one place to another. Here im just beyond the half way point where the border of one state reaches the other. Since Im by myself I couldn't take a photo of myself showing that I was in two places at the the same time. So fornately the sun was shining well and it casted my shadow showing I was in both places at the same time 😊
At one side of the bridge you get a great view of the River below. The other side you can see another bridge, a traffic bridge and beyond that is railroad bridge. I couldn't get a good photo of the railroad bridge from the bridge so I took one of it from a parking lot when I was leaving the park. If I wasn't freezing 🥶 at this point I would have taken some pictures of the view of downtown Omaha.
I probably spent about 30 minutes on the bridge and was eager to get off of it. I took these two pictures on my journey to get off the bridge. It was nice having the wind at my back and slightly walking downhill. The bridge continues quite a bit past the water on the Iowa side. There is a lot of undeveloped landscape for a good while on this side. That is because it enters a park off the river while on the Nebraska side it enters right into the city. It felt good to get back into my warm car.
Hope you enjoyed this journey of mine on the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge. Take care, stay safe, and have a great rest of your weekend. Best of luck to all who provide their entry to this awesome contest. Until next time!