When I got to the east end of the bridge, I decided to walk down these steps. I held on tight enough to make my hand sort of dirty from running along the steel pipe handrail, but I made it to the sidewalk. I took this photo so you could see the stairs.
Here's some interesting info on the stairs that I found at the city of Portland's Web site: The historic nature of the Burnside Bridge prohibits any structure from adding any weight to the bridge: the connector that connects the Esplanade to the Burnside Bridge does not lean on the bridge, it merely 'kisses' the bridge. The connector is held in place by pilings sunk into a huge concrete base and the tower structure bears the weight of the stair truss.
When I got to the Eastbank Esplanade, I didn't take the floating sidewalk northward. Here's a photo of that part of it, though.
I walked from the Burnside Bridge to the pedestrian/bicycle ramp that connects to the Morrison Bridge.
Looking at the curved ramp, I decided I could make it up and around if I stayed on the inside of the curve. Here's a photo I took from the middle of the bridge, looking eastward toward the ramp.
I did feel short-lived moments of anxiety, but I'm actively working at overcoming my fear of bridges and heights, determined to increase my first-hand knowledge of these wonderful Willamette River bridges and the views from them.
4 comments:
Wow. That's a lot of walking (from my viewpoint, being that I'm having one knee replaced on Wed. morning). Two steps and I'm done for now.
I can't help but see lots of triangles in most of the photos. I like to look at a photo from a design point of view.
Then, there's the point of view that's uniquely yours, in that you have a phobia about bridges. I know phobias myself, so I can appreciate the courage it took to do your documentary.
I don't like to be on large expanses of bridges, but somehow I get through it. It's the vastness of the water that scares me.
Oregon has its "newness" as a state in that, unlike NYCity for example, Portland wasn't "thrown together" without being more thought out than were the first cities of the eastern US.
When people like Vaux and Olmsted (Central Park, Prospect Park) finally came upon the scene, they had the sensibility to be visionary about the physical environment. As well, they tended to needs of their times that went by the wayside for other places. They gave the people open spaces to congregate, enjoy nature, exercise and free themselves from the crowded polluted environs of the early times of NYC.
Portland seems to have had the benefit of that kind of vision while being absent of many of NYC's "mess-ups" from the past. Progress with sensibility.
Yes, Portland did benefit from a good deal of planning from the start; it seems to me that it continues today, too, with all sorts of planning commissions and such.
Hope all goes well with your knee surgery.
Lynette
As always, great photographs and interesting dialog. Keep working on the heights issue!
Honesty; Good luck with the knee, i had my left knee replace in feb of this year, I love it!! What a great thing to be able to walk pain free, to hike, see the city. good luck to you.
Michael
Olmsted designed a beautiful park here in SE Portland; Lauralhurst.
Post a Comment