Bridge Heights, Would You ?

[NewBasfordlad 3,599]

In my teens and twenties I did a lot of rock climbing and even a parachute jump, I had no fear of heights what so ever. It is different now, I know I don't have the sense of balance and quick reactions necessary if something goes wrong.

There is a simple but quite striking bridge on the M6 goes over the Manchester ship canal I believe. But my favourite crossing is not a bridge at all, it's the Chirk and Pontcysylite viaducts built by Thomas Telford and opened in 1805 this has to be one of the scariest and most beautiful canal crossings any where. When on the back of a barge the helmsman only has a 2" wide trough edge between him and space there are no railings on that side. I have seen many folks get off the boat (my wife included) so they can walk across on the bridleway which does have iron railings.

[Guest]

Worked at considerable heights in loads of jobs,my neighbour nearly fainted last year when I stood up on our chimney stacks and painted them with a roller.wearing a harness is important, but those and lanyards are a pain to work with.

[katyjay 5,091]

I do believe they are building a new bridge over the Forth now. I've ridden over the road bridge quite a few times, I think the above is the rail bridge?

[plantfit 7,592]

it is the rail bridge Katyjay,and they are building a new road crossing,well on the one to completing by now I think

Rog

[Robbie 39]

Katyjay,

There is a steam train crossing the bridge.

[SPIKEISLAND9 46]

#19 4 good pics, also #28, but as the images appear to me to be in the body of the posts, as opposed hosted by third party sites, how do you do that?

Surely each individual image is a greater pixel count than the maximum allowed, the one with four images especially. Interesting.

[catfan 14,793]

#32. Easy, I reduce image size first in a free program like PIXresizer, then host on Photobucket, from there copy the link to this or other posts.

[NewBasfordlad 3,599]

#28 I've actually stood on that very slip way and marvelled at the construction. Did I hear somewhere they have used a new paint so the continuous painting regime will be no more?

[Chulla 4,946]

#33. Catfan. I also reduce my image sizes before I post onto Photobucket, but if anyone is interested, you can reduce them once they are in Photobucket. The only problem I find in doing it this way is that Photobucket then retains two images, one at the original size and the other at the reduced size. You then should delete the original. I usually reduce down to 800 wide.

[catfan 14,793]

Just read somewhere that the new Forth Bridge is costing £1.6 Billion & where is all the steel coming from ?

Bleddy China.

[Ayupmeducks 1,730]

It'll collapse after a year then, China's steel makers have a poor reputation for making quality steel.

[plantfit 7,592]

New type of paint should last at least 50 years,I have some pics somewhere of the bridges so will upload when I can. Went over the Forth bridge a couple of years ago went to Perth on the train just to say I had been over the bridge,All rail and canal bridges have a number except for the Forth rail bridge which is known only as "The Bridge"

Rog

[plantfit 7,592]

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Forth rail bridge and Forth road bridge

Rog

[StephenFord 866]

Like Catfan, I HATE these long bridges. I use them when necessary, but I certainly don't enjoy the experience. They scare the living daylights out of me. Went home from my son's home in South Wales when we were living in Devon a couple of years ago. It was evening, dark, Winter, blowing a south westerly gale up the Severn estuary, and rain coming down like stair-rods. The interminably long second Severn crossing had a 40mph speed restriction for good reasons (so it was going to take even longer to get across!) Naturally, this was tending to bunch the traffic up. I tucked myself into the inside lane, spot on 40 like the rest of the good guys, and gripped the wheel so hard it might have disintegrated in my hands! Actually, the rain was not coming DOWN at all - it was sweeping across horizontally from right to left and the roadway was running with water. There were still cars in the outside lane hurtling along at 60 and 70. Then, about half way across this twerp in an artic came blasting up the middle lane at, I guess about 55, throwing up a giant bow-wave. It seemed to take him for ever to get past me, and during the whole process I was virtually blinded - it was like driving under water. Knowing that the bloke in front and the one behind could probably see no more than I could was not a reassuring feeling. I was literally shaking and felt physically sick until we got out of the melee and back onto terra firma.

[plantfit 7,592]

The bridge I can't pronounce on the Llangollen canal going over the river Dee 150feet below,notice there is no rails on one side of the bridge

Rog

[plantfit 7,592]

Looking over the same bridge up the Dee valley towards Llangollen, you should try to overcome your fears of heights if you can ,there's some fantastics views to be had

Rog

[Bubblewrap 3,815]

I'm surprised the pikies haven't nicked the lead yet

[plantfit 7,592]

Mrs P on one of her sponsored runs,this time across the Humber bridge

Rog

[plantfit 7,592]

Not lead Bubble,cast iron,cast in sections and Welsh flannel and sugar syrup used to seal the joints,most of which are still original today,lovely bridge and well worth going if you get the chance

Rog

[catfan 14,793]

#36.

Heard on the wireless today that 1400 job losses in Lanarkshire & Scunthorpe steel works, crazy.

[NewBasfordlad 3,599]

Couple of cracking shots of the Pontcysylite viaduct thanks Rog, maybe now folks will understand why its my favourite crossing. It was a brilliant sunny day the first time I crossed and I have a photo I took leaning over the edge and you can clearly see my shadow on the valley floor.

Something I have always wondered about is the lack of railings it looks like the holes are there but they either weren't fitted or Bubblewrap's pikies have nicked em.

[Merthyr Imp 729]

#40 - You should have left the car and gone through the nice weatherproof tunnel!

[plantfit 7,592]

Terrible shame about the steel works Catfan, a couple of years ago we had some bearings delivered for one of our grading screens they were "made in China" what a load of crap they were did'nt last a month before they needed replacing,British made bearings last10 years or more,British made was a byword for quality what ever happened to that?like everything else that made Britain great we gave it away,terrible shame

Rog

[catfan 14,793]

Most stuff produced by the Chinese is crap too.

[Ayupmeducks 1,730]

Feller I know, used to work for a major British mining machine manufacturer used to travel the world to sort out problems collieries had with his companies machines. They were setting a Chinese company up to make their machines under license in China. He stated, they have a looooonnnggg way to go with metallurgy before they can successfully compete with the west.