CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS
THE PENOBSCOT NARROWS BRIDGE AND OBSERVATORY
The Penobscot River, Penobscot Bay, and Cadillac Mountain were aglow, beautified by the brilliant October sunshine. Viewed from five hundred and fifty-five feet above water level, the views were, well, spectacular.
My husband Monte and I were traveling from Kittery, Maine to Ellsworth, Maine, on Route 1. To cross the Penobscot River, we would travel across the Penobscot Narrows Bridge, about one hundred and thirty-five feet above water level.
Just before crossing the bridge we stopped at a scenic pull-off to admire the new bridge that had been under construction the last time we had been to New England, in 2006. What a wonder!
The new bridge replaced the Waldo-Hancock Bridge, which remains next to the new structure. Built in 1931, travelers on U. S. 1 and Rt. 3 drove one hundred thirty-five feet above water over a two thousand forty foot central span, between Prospect and Verona Island (near Bucksport). In 2002 the Maine Department of Transportation discovered that the bridge cables were too corroded to save the structure. Thus, the bridge at the confluence of Penobscot River and Penobscot Bay was replaced. The new bridge opened on May 19, 2007.
One of the two towers on the bridge includes an elevator that takes visitors four hundred and twenty feet up the tower’s core to the Penobscot Narrows Observatory. It is the first such tower in the United States, and the third in the world. The other two are in Thailand and Slovakia.
One of my “non-negotiable” plans for this trip to Maine was a visit to this observation deck. However, this was not supposed to be the day. This experience might be something to share with my niece, Erin, her husband Greg, and their daughters Paige and Morgan. But this day presented the perfect viewing weather, which presented a dilemma. The weather on the day we went with Erin might be cloudy. I finally decided we should visit the observation deck today, knowing it would be likely that we would return with Erin.
I plugged my laptop into the electric converter we keep in the car, slipped in my camera disc, and began the half-hour time it would take to remove the pictures from my camera disc. While we waited, we enjoyed the views and hung around, watching others who were stopping to enjoy the view. Most of them were taking pictures. I approached some of them, offering to take pictures of them with the bridge in the background. All but one accepted—and she said she never took pictures with people in them.
As I positioned the subjects on the right, with the two bridges visible beside and behind them, some asked if I was professional. Then I asked them if they knew they could take an elevator forty-two stories into the tower, and most said no.
Finally my pictures were downloaded. After I shut down the laptop computer we drove to the bridge tower.
The guard on duty told us it was a fifty-second elevator ride, and warned us that when we exited the elevator we would be about three feet from a glass window. Several persons were on the elevator with us, including one woman had been to the top several times before. The others were “newbies,” like us.
Later, Monte said he was psyched about the glass wall being three feet away from the elevator doors. “You get out and there is no place to retreat,” he said. “I thought I might have to sit on the steps while Carolyn went on up. I was able to calm down when I was at the deck.”
After getting off the elevator, we climbed the two flights of steps, surrounded by glass windows, to get to the tower deck. We were at the three landings, the three sets of glass windows we saw from the ground level.
The views of the Penobscot River were fantastic. There was a paper factory (another viewer identified it for us) at the river bend, Cadillac Mountain in the (south) east, and a view of the river flowing inland in the (north) west.
I proceeded to take photos of the scenes below, starting with the paper factory seen at the top of the steps, and proceeding around the windows until I returned to the starting point. Then I handed the camera to Monte so he could take pictures of me with the river in the background. Other views included that of a school bus on the road below, our car in the parking lot, and the old bridge adjacent to this new structure. Then I offered to take photos of persons in the tower, including a group of children with their mothers and a family group.
Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/carolyncholland/2910626437/in/photostream/ Bridges
http://www.flickr.com/photos/carolyncholland/2911474446/ Mountain view
http://www.flickr.com/photos/carolyncholland/2911474170/in/photostream/ River
The only complaint came from Monte—he was upset that three men stood in one area of the deck, blocking the view from others as they gabbed.
The elevator ride back to the base of the tower was uneventful. We certainly were not disappointed that we might return in a few days. The experience was worth repeating. Watch for the second segment about visiting the Penobscot Narrows Observatory.
For further information on the Penobscot Narrows Bridge and Observatory, click on:
http://www.penobscotnarrowsbridgefest.com/
http://www.penobscotnarrowsbridgeandobservatory.info/
ADDITIONAL READING:
Hi, Bobby St Jean sent me the infro. My sister in law is RuthDoanMacDougall.com
Hiking books and 9 novels.
My Mother and Bobbies Mother were best friends. In Laconia, NH
Nice Photos. I just got my first digil camera. I have been into Photos for a long time. Nikon stuff.
Gilford, N.Y.
Comment by kirk dougal — October 12, 2008 @ 12:48 pm |