|
(4) Penobscot Narrows Bridge
The Narrows Observatory A one-minute elevator ride will take you to one of the most unusual views in Maine, a 360 degree view from 437 feet above the Penobscot River, just a few miles up river from Penobscot Bay. Located atop the northern tower or pylon of the new Penobscot Narrows Bridge, the observatory gives visitors a spectacular look at mountains, lakes, and portions of Penobscot Bay. |
Searsport Charters, LLC (1) Stockton Harbor
(2) Fort Point
(3) The River
(4) Narrows Bridge (5) Fort Knox (6) Bucksport
(7) Verona |
||
|
The Penobscot Narrows Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge over the Penobscot River near Bucksport, Maine. It replaced the Waldo-Hancock Bridge, built in 1931. The new bridge is 2,120 feet (646 m) long. It is one of two bridges in the U.S. constructed recently to utilize a cradle system that carries the strands within the stays from bridge deck to bridge deck, as a continuous element, eliminating anchorages in the pylons. Look directly below at the river on which the young explorer Samuel de Champlain sailed in 1604, and the American navy suffered its most disastrous loss when 37 vessels burned and sank in the Penobscot Expedition of 1779.
Located on the grounds of Fort Knox, a third-system granite fortress built to prevent another naval disaster on the Penobscot, the Observatory tower is open to the public during the same regular seasonal hours as the fort
|
Each epoxy-coated steel strand is carried inside the cradle in a one-inch steel tube. Each strand acts independently, allowing for removal, inspection and replacement of individual strands. The cable-stay system was designed with a system that uses pressurized nirtogen gas to defend against corrosion. Additionally, in June of 2007, six reference strands within three stays were replaced with carbon fiber strands - a first in the U.S. Monitoring on the strands will evaluate this material for future use in bridge designs. These engineering innovations helped the bridge appear in the December 2006 edition of Popular Science as one of the 100 best innovations of the year. |
||
|
|||
