Sunday, August 15, 2010

Tift Bridge - Switzerland


Do I dare? I'm afraid of heights, but I love mountains. Bad combination, but I cope till now. Still, sometimes you see things you really don't think you'll ever experience. Things like this bridge in the Bernese Oberland, Switzerland. The triftbridge is the longest and highest suspension bridge in the Alps and really looks like a challenge to me!



From highestbridges.com:

Located high up above the Trift Lake that was formed by surrounding glaciers, the spectacular Triftbrücke opened in June of 2009 as a replacement for an earlier catenary suspension bridge constructed in 2005. The first bridge became an instant tourist attraction despite the remote location that requires a ride up a cable car known as the Triftbahn and then a 90 minute hike to the bridge. The first span was suffering from wind related damage as well as entry points that required hiking along dangerous cliffside paths that were exposed to the elements. So in 2008 the local power company Grimsel decided to replace the first bridge with a more structurally substantial one at a more accessible location about 100 feet (30 meters) higher in elevation. The older 2004 bridge was 230 feet (70 meters) high while the 2009 bridge is 328 feet (100 meters) high. The span length was also increased from 328 feet (100 meters) to 558 feet (170 meters). The newer bridge looks similar to the old one but the handrails are higher and there are stabilizing cables to prevent strong oscillations from the wind.


1 comment:

Unknown said...

Holy crap, those are freaky from that angle looking down!!!