cazalea
[Seiko Moderator]
20756
Bridges Along the River
We took our first walk across a new river bridge which is finally (almost) finished after 5 years of construction. All lanes are open and the contractors are removing all signs of their presence and finishing the details.
(Our walk from about 6 months ago is HERE)
Do we ever see the catch? Yes we do.
And no, that little fish is not enough for the day, so he came back for more.
Path on the old bridge is considerably and frighteningly narrower than the new bridge. We leaned over the rail and he pushed past us on foot, thankfully.
East of the bridge the birds are still hunting.
We are now at the western end of Interstate 8 (Hwy 80) built when I was a kid. It runs from Ocean Beach to Casa Grande in Arizona. Here it parallels the bike / walking path back to our starting point.
California Patina Hot Rod Ford Pickup
The old bridge is also ARCHITECTURAL in its own way and interesting to contemplate.
Even if you are a bird! I got a tip to take this angle from another guy who was out there with his camera. We see him every 6-12 months.
The birds and the river are truly captivating. The other photographer started at 6:12 am (sun-up). We did not, we enjoyed breakfast first and then went walking.
This bird's eye is on the job; no time for messing around.
We saw a bunny on the other side and one squirrel, but got no photos. Here I am making up for it with the first MAMMAL -- a ground squirrel.
And here's our first Hummingbird of the day (they get their own special category as we almost always find a few).
A lovely tree just coming into blossom.
And here's our second squirrel, freezing and giving me time to zoom in on him.
A rabbit across on the other side of the path is also cooperative, as I get several shots here.
This is the first, just-turned-3-years-old-cyclist that we have ever encountered. He has ridden more than a mile in his pajamas and they are turning back towards home now. A future Lance Armstrong?
We continue towards the new bridge. Sea World in the distance on the north side of the river -- a few miles upriver on the left is where we walked yesterday.
Another cyclist and a couple running make the path seem crowded, but really we have seen only a dozen or so folks out there in 5000 steps of walking.
We went across, turned west towards the ocean, and rambled down to the final bridge before the surf, crossed it and came back. You can compare the 50-year difference in style and details of the bridges.
OK, the Geographic overview is complete, and I will proceed with the photos and narration, highlighting in BOLD the elements we look for on each walk.
My wife spotted a lady bug on a plant poking up from the construction debris and gravel. Right at the start, our INSECT specimen is found!
The architectural design is nice and clean but has that sense of "spare no expense, the taxpayers are paying" as in "let's put a bunch of big pretty benches here, for the 3 pedestrians a month who cross on foot."
Let's cast some special frills into the guard rails to contain low-energy lighting for the feet of the few a year who dare cross on foot at night.
Cool ARCHITECTURE and lighting.
Bridge crossed, we head for the ocean.
The flowers are sky high here, just as they were on yesterday's walk. FLOWERS galore.
It was early, the tide was out, and the BIRDS were looking for breakfast.
They apparently work on a grid system where each gets a territory and they stand looking both up and down river as the tide was slowly reaching its low. Ready to strike!
Do they ever catch anything? Yes they do.
My wife spotted a lady bug on a plant poking up from the construction debris and gravel. Right at the start, our INSECT specimen is found!
The architectural design is nice and clean but has that sense of "spare no expense, the taxpayers are paying" as in "let's put a bunch of big pretty benches here, for the 3 pedestrians a month who cross on foot."
Let's cast some special frills into the guard rails to contain low-energy lighting for the feet of the few a year who dare cross on foot at night.
Cool ARCHITECTURE and lighting.
Bridge crossed, we head for the ocean.
The flowers are sky high here, just as they were on yesterday's walk. FLOWERS galore.
It was early, the tide was out, and the BIRDS were looking for breakfast.
They apparently work on a grid system where each gets a territory and they stand looking both up and down river as the tide was slowly reaching its low. Ready to strike!
Do they ever catch anything? Yes they do.
Do we ever see the catch? Yes we do.
And no, that little fish is not enough for the day, so he came back for more.
Sometimes they pick up mussels and drop them on the path to break the shells...
Path on the old bridge is considerably and frighteningly narrower than the new bridge. We leaned over the rail and he pushed past us on foot, thankfully.
West of the bridge - the Pacific Ocean a mile or so away.
East of the bridge the birds are still hunting.
We are now at the western end of Interstate 8 (Hwy 80) built when I was a kid. It runs from Ocean Beach to Casa Grande in Arizona. Here it parallels the bike / walking path back to our starting point.
California Patina Hot Rod Ford Pickup
The old bridge is also ARCHITECTURAL in its own way and interesting to contemplate.
Even if you are a bird! I got a tip to take this angle from another guy who was out there with his camera. We see him every 6-12 months.
The birds and the river are truly captivating. The other photographer started at 6:12 am (sun-up). We did not, we enjoyed breakfast first and then went walking.
This bird's eye is on the job; no time for messing around.
This end and side of the river did not see any heavy equipment during the bridge building, and so the wildlife is better.
I score the first LIZARD / REPTILE photo of the day (I saw others but they were too fast for me and my camera).
You can see where his tail has been broken off before, but he lived to grow another ...
We saw a bunny on the other side and one squirrel, but got no photos. Here I am making up for it with the first MAMMAL -- a ground squirrel.
And here's our first Hummingbird of the day (they get their own special category as we almost always find a few).
A lovely tree just coming into blossom.
And here's our second squirrel, freezing and giving me time to zoom in on him.
A rabbit across on the other side of the path is also cooperative, as I get several shots here.
This is the first, just-turned-3-years-old-cyclist that we have ever encountered. He has ridden more than a mile in his pajamas and they are turning back towards home now. A future Lance Armstrong?
We continue towards the new bridge. Sea World in the distance on the north side of the river -- a few miles upriver on the left is where we walked yesterday.
Another cyclist and a couple running make the path seem crowded, but really we have seen only a dozen or so folks out there in 5000 steps of walking.
This cyclist's backpack says FEAR and in keeping with that, on this lonely path he is wearing a Covid mask...
Some pink geraniums give us some color, as we walk past a homeless guy picking through the remnants of the bridge construction that haven't yet been cleared,
and then we are back at the busy road where the workers are about to put up some fencing where the path goes under the bridge. A warning is posted to Tall Cyclists...
The only guy I know who might have to duck his head -- Bill Walton! I went to high school with Bill, and worked for Holland Cycles around the time we built that enormous frame for him.
Some pink geraniums give us some color, as we walk past a homeless guy picking through the remnants of the bridge construction that haven't yet been cleared,
and then we are back at the busy road where the workers are about to put up some fencing where the path goes under the bridge. A warning is posted to Tall Cyclists...
The only guy I know who might have to duck his head -- Bill Walton! I went to high school with Bill, and worked for Holland Cycles around the time we built that enormous frame for him.
Thanks for walking with us.
Cazalea
Bridges Along the River
We took our first walk across a new river bridge which is finally (almost) finished after 5 years of construction. All lanes are open and the contractors are removing all signs of their presence and finishing the details. ( Our walk from about 6 months ag...
I absolutely love bridges....
And that one is no exception to the rule . The most impressive image for me this time around is the perfectly mirrored frame of the seagull in full flight, returning for more food .... Cheers, Filip
Excellent pictorial, as always 👌🏽
Regarding the new bridge, it doesn’t appear that those design elements you pointed out were superfluous since I imagine there are quite a few bicyclists that use that path regularly, no? So, the lighting and wide lanes are needed. It’s a great bridge, I t...