THE GRAND CANYON BRIDGE 



647 



Photograph by Kolb Brothers 



THE PACK-TRAIN MAKING ITS TORTUOUS WAY TOWARD THE RIVER BED 



In transporting the material from the rim of the Grand Canyon to the suspension bridge 

 camp site many difficulties were encountered. On one occasion one of the pack-horses went 

 over the cliff, carrying two other animals with it. Only the resourcefulness and daring of 

 one of the men saved the remainder of the train by cutting the ropes. 



went over the cliff, carrying two others 

 with him ; but a resourceful lad cut the 

 rope and saved the remainder of the 

 train. 



Since January these pack-trains have 

 been steadily trudging up and down be- 

 tween the hidden river and the railroad 

 on the rim. 



A REHEARSAL FOR CARRYING THE CABLES 



The transportation of the 1,200-pound 

 cables alone marks an epoch in bridge- 

 building. The superintendent of the 

 Grand Canyon National Park, who su- 

 pervises the bridge-work, is an engineer 

 whose varied experience ranges from set- 

 ting the official height of Mount McKin- 

 ley, in Alaska, to locating a Patagonian 

 railroad. He conceived the idea of ''re- 

 hearsing" the carrying down of the cables 

 by estimating, with ropes, just the proper 

 length of line necessary between each 

 mule, as the train swung around the 

 curves. The 1,200-pound cable was then 

 loaded on to eight mules roped together. 



with the weight evenly divided, a man 

 walking at the head of each mule. 



The sun was high in the heavens as we 

 made the final drop down the newly cut 

 trail in the granite wall to the bridge 

 camp by the river. There were three 

 sleeping tents in the camp, a dining-room 

 tent, and a kitchen. The cook played 

 star role. It is he who makes or breaks 

 a camp. This particular cook put Broad- 

 way chefs to shame, in spite of the fact 

 that everything but the water had to be 

 packed down from above. 



A 420-FOOT BRIDGE 



I was fortunate in having the con- 

 tractor himself explain the bridge to me. 



The completed bridge will be 420 feet 

 along the roadway, with a span of 500 feet 

 from center to center of the bearings. 

 The two main steel cables are placed 

 about 10 feet apart and are anchored to the 

 canyon walls 80 feet above the floor level, 

 by means of sections of 80-pound railroad 

 iron set into the rock with concrete. 



