The World’s Highest Bridge

Stretching like a silver cobweb, this beautiful suspension bridge carries the unique Skyline Drive, a scenic Highway from Canon City six miles away, over the dark chasm of the Royal Gorge. One thousand fifty-three feet above the river, it is the highest (above the water) suspension bridge in the world. The span is 880 feet long, ranking eighth in length among the large bridges of the United States. The entire structure has a length of 1,260 feet with the width of the thoroughfare 18 feet. The cables supporting the bridge are suspended from towers 150 feet high. These cables weigh 300 tons. The bridge was constructed in six months at a cost of about $250,000. It was dedicated on December 8, 1929.

The Royal Gorge in Fremont County, Colorado, is where the Arkansas River breaks through the plains. Cutting through from the summit of lofty peaks to their very foundation, it extends for a distance of ten miles through very narrow walls like these. This giant chasm stands among the real wonders of the world and is the only one of its kind penetrated by both a railway and a river. Its deep red granite walls sparkle with mica presenting a vision of marvelous beauty.

Looking down these multicolored walls from the center of Royal Gorge Bridge you are silenced by the feeling of majesty that comes over you. You look down, down, down, into an abyss at the bottom of which what appears to be toy trains rush through in snake-like fashion. The river which roars and leaps along in a thousand plunging falls appears like a lazy stream. The sensation of awful chasm and wooded mountain steeps fills you with fear and delight, with reverence and awesome meditation.