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The Royal Gorge Bridge

"Often compared to the Eiffel Tower in Paris or the Empire State Building in New York City, the Royal Gorge Bridge in Cañon City, Colorado is both daring in its design and remarkable in its achievement. It's truly an engineering feat. The world's highest Suspension Bridge is over a quarter of a mile long and hangs 1,053 feet above the roaring Arkansas River below. Though it doesn't stand alone, the suspension bridge is the center jewel in a crown of engineering achievements all within the 360 acre theme park that some call "the real" Colorado.

Engineering Facts

• Construction on the world's highest Suspension Bridge began June 5, 1929 and completed Nov. 1929
• Length: 1,260 feet (384 meters)
• Width: 18 feet (5 meters)
• Main Span: 880 feet (268 meters)
• Towers: 150 feet high (46 meters)
• 2,100 strands of No.9 galvanized wire
• Weight of cables: 300 tons
• 1,000 tons of steel in the floor of Bridge
• Walkway: made of 1,292 planks of deck, about 250 are replaced annually
• Original cost to build: $350,000—cost today about $20-million
• Bridge will support in excess of two-million pounds
• Listed on the National Historic Register"
(www.royalgorgebridge.com)