Welcome to Top10Archive!
Gear up, faithful Archivers, as we prepare to trek around the world to… walk across
bridges?
These aren’t your average overpasses or toll bridges, though.
We’re looking at ten of what we’d call the scariest bridges in the world.
Think you have what it takes to conquer your fear of heights?
10.
Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, Northern Ireland Nothing says "I feel safe" like a 66 foot
or 20 meter stroll across a rope bridge 98 feet or 30 meters above jagged rocks below.
The Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge is one of Northern Ireland's famed tourist attractions, with
tourists trekking across the unstable stretch of rope and wood just for the sake of being
able to say they did so.
The bridge links Ballintoy with the small island of Carrickarede and, though sturdy,
it does give its passengers quite the fright as it sways over sure death below.
The rope bridge wasn't always so put together.
In the 1970s, it was little more than one handrail and spacious slats of wood.
9.
Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, Louisiana If you are a thalassophobic, we may be starting
this installment on the wrong foot for you.
This duo of bridges tops out at 24-miles or 38 kilometers long, bridging Metairie and
Mandeville across Lake Pontchartrain.
By the time you reach the 8-mile or 12 kilometer mark, all signs of land are gone, leaving
you to continue the 30-minute journey towards an empty horizon.
It sounds tame enough, but there's a certain fright factor that comes with being so far
from land.
Sailors may have no issue crossing the world's longest continuous bridge, but common land
lovers may feel their heart's racing as Louisiana fades away into the distance.
8.
Millau Viaduct, France At first thought, everything about this cable-stayed
bridge over the River Tarn in France sounds pretty normal; but then you get a little deeper
into the facts.
Facts like how the bridge stands with peaks at 1,125 feet or 343 meters high and sometimes
clears above the clouds for a surreal drive.
The bridge is taller than the Eiffel Tower and probably isn't a route taken by many acrophobics,
as there is a 890 feet or 270 meter gap between the road itself and the ground below.
The Millau Viaduct has been dubbed the tallest bridge in the world and makes for the perfect
spot for someone looking to break the tallest bungee jump record.
7.
Canopy Walk, Ghana The jungles of Kakum National Park in Africa
offer plenty for the eye to see, from the rich foliage to the tropical wildlife, but
there’s another aspect that appeals to thrill seekers: a series of suspension bridges hung
some 130 feet or 39 meters above the jungle floor.
The seven bridges encompass a length of 1,000 feet or 304 meters.
What’s more terrifying than the height is how the bridges look to be secured, a deceptive
mix of simple rope and natural materials.
In actuality, though, their make-up is a much safer combination of wire rope and aluminum.
Still, one can't ignore the rush of staring down about 12 stories to the hard ground below.
6.
Puente de Ojuela, Mexico There are several unpleasantries about this
suspension bridge, a relic of an old mining settlement located in the city of Torreon,
Coahuila in Mexico.
While the rest of the settlement has dissipated over time, the bridge remains the only functional
structure.
To make it suitable for pedestrians, the Penoles Company renovated the bridge to make it less
likely for someone to fall the 360 feet or 109 meters below.
The once bustling mining town is now a ghostly remnant of itself, the bridge completing the
connection between civilization and the mine.
The straight and narrow link is a great test of will, running a heart-pounding stretch
of 984 feet or 300 meters.
5.
Ai-Petri Wooden Bridges On the southeastern coast of Crimea, Russia,
you'll find the Ai-Petri region of mountains, a towering spectacle of nature that culminates
in tall, rocky peaks and many deadly drops.
Connected several of these peaks to one another is a series of footbridges that the normal
traveler would likely dub "Nope Bridges."
The configurations of spacious planks of wood and thin wiring stretch over valleys as much
as 4,376 feet or 1,334 meters below the bridge.
Swaying in the wind, high above the clouds, these small bridges offer little comfort and
should definitely be avoided by anyone with even the most uneven of balances.
4.
Old Hanging Bridge, Afghanistan When you cross over dangerous, rushing waters,
you really want to make sure you're doing so on a bridge that an engineer would describe
as sturdy and well-constructed…
not a bundle of sticks, wood, and wires.
The walk across this old bridge, its exact location a bit of a mystery to the World Wide
Web, may not be long, but it looks to be a nightmare.
It's not a huge drop down to the river below, but one could guess it would be a massively
unpleasant one.
If you're a little rusty on keeping balance, you have two thin strips of wire on either
side to keep you from falling off.
It's totally safe.
Honest!
3.
Hussaini Hanging Bridge, Pakistan It's probably none-too-comforting that the
original Hussaini Hanging Bridge washed away in a monsoon, but if you're braving this Pakistani
feat of endurance, that probably wouldn't phase you anyway.
Though the bridge gives great views of the Himalaya and Karakoram mountains, it's also
built with sparsity in mind.
The base of the bridge is a scattered selection of native materials, so being mindful of your
footing is imperative.
The thick roping meant to keep your balance will do you no good should you fall through
one of the many gaps, which is really not recommended.
Though dangerous looking, the hanging bridge is a great example of risks worth taking to
experience something really breathtaking. 2.
Tibetan Bridge, Italy The mess of cabling and wires that run from
the mountainous facade to this snaking bridge in Claviere, Italy should make you feel safe,
but it's almost too chaotic to be comforting.
The up and down looping of this bridge can feel treacherous, especially if you happen
to glance below you, between the gaps in the steel steps, to the gorge more than 100 feet
or 30 meters below you.
Like the Hussaini Hanging Bridge and many others on this list, though, getting from
point A to point B without falling to your death provides quite the feeling of accomplishment.
1.
Mount Hua in China China’s Mount Hua stands at peak of 7,070
feet or 2,154 meters, housing a view that can only be described as unbeatable; but one
has to ask at what cost should such things come.
To reach the tall peak, climbers are put through a gauntlet of misery, one lengthy leg of the
trip being a series of wooden planks secured to the side of the mountain.
At barely over a foot wide, the rickety bridge relies on a harness system and a whole lot
of luck to keep travelers safe.
It's believed the mountain experiences over 100 deaths a year from travelers looking to
visit one of the many religious structures found in the summits