Capilano Suspension Bridge
Encyclopedia
Simple suspension bridge
A simple suspension bridge is an early type of bridge that is supported entirely from anchors at either end, and has no towers or piers. However, it may have saddles...
crossing the Capilano River
Capilano River
The Capilano River flows from north to south through the Coast Mountains on Vancouver's North Shore and empties into Burrard Inlet, opposite Stanley Park. The river is one of three primary sources of drinking water for residents of Greater Vancouver. The Cleveland Dam, built in 1954, impounds a...
in the District of North Vancouver
North Vancouver, British Columbia (district municipality)
The District of North Vancouver is a district municipality in British Columbia and is part of the GVRD. It surrounds the City of North Vancouver on three sides.-Geography:The District of North Vancouver is separated from Vancouver by Burrard Inlet...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The current bridge is 136 metres (446.2 ft) long and 70 metres (229.7 ft) above the river. It is part of a private facility, with a charge for admission, and draws over 800,000 visitors a year.
History
The bridge was originally built in 1889 by George Grant Mackay, a Scottish civil engineer and park commissioner for VancouverVancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
. It was originally made of hemp ropes with a deck of cedar planks, and was replaced with a wire cable bridge in 1903. In 1910 Edward Mahon purchased the Capilano Suspension Bridge. "Mac" MacEachran purchased the Bridge from Mahon in 1935 and invited local natives to place their totem pole
Totem pole
Totem poles are monumental sculptures carved from large trees, mostly Western Red Cedar, by cultures of the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America...
s in the park, adding a native theme. In 1945, he sold the bridge to Henri Aubeneau.
The bridge was completely rebuilt in 1956.
The park was sold to Nancy Stibbard, the current owner, in 1983. Annual attendance has since increased, and in May 2004, Treetops Adventures was opened. This new attraction consists of seven footbridges suspended between old-growth Douglas Fir trees on the west side of the canyon, forming a walkway up to 30 metres (98.4 ft) above the forest floor.
Other park features
Incidents
In 1999, a woman dropped her 18-month-old, disabled child off the bridge. She claimed she stumbled accidentally and the child slipped from her grasp. The child was not seriously injured. The woman lost legal custody of her child as a result of the incident. The woman took legal action against the owner of the bridge, alleging negligence by the owner. The case was settled out of court.In 2006, a 300 year old, 46 ton Douglas fir tree toppled during a heavy snow storm. The tree fell across the western end of the bridge. Park officials closed the bridge temporarily while repairs were performed.
On June 6, 2010, a teenage tourist on a class trip from California climbed over a railing and fell more than 30 metres from a fenced off viewing platform near the bridge. By the time rescue workers came to his aid, the victim was dead. The official RCMP finding was that the teen was under the influence of LSD at the time of the incident.
Popular culture
The bridge has been featured as a setting in episodes of several television series, including MacGyverMacGyver
MacGyver is an American action-adventure television series created by Lee David Zlotoff. Henry Winkler and John Rich were the executive producers. The show ran for seven seasons on ABC in the United States and various other networks abroad from 1985 to 1992. The series was filmed in Los Angeles...
, Sliders
Sliders
Sliders is an American science fiction television series. It was broadcast for five seasons, beginning in 1995 and ending in 2000. The series follows a group of travelers as they use a wormhole to "slide" between different parallel universes. The show was created by Robert K. Weiss and Tracy Tormé...
, The Crow: Stairway to Heaven
The Crow: Stairway to Heaven
The Crow: Stairway to Heaven was a 1998 Canadian television series created by Bryce Zabel based on The Crow comic by James O'Barr starring Mark Dacascos in the lead role as Eric Draven, reprising the role originally played by Brandon Lee in the 1994 film The Crow...
, and Psych
Psych
Psych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks and broadcast on USA Network. It stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observational skills" and impressive detective instincts...
.
See also
- Capilano RiverCapilano RiverThe Capilano River flows from north to south through the Coast Mountains on Vancouver's North Shore and empties into Burrard Inlet, opposite Stanley Park. The river is one of three primary sources of drinking water for residents of Greater Vancouver. The Cleveland Dam, built in 1954, impounds a...
- Capilano River Regional ParkCapilano River Regional ParkCapilano River Regional Park is located in the District of North Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of twenty-one regional parks operated by the Metro Vancouver. The park encompasses most of the upstream areas of the Capilano River below the Cleveland Dam. The area north of the dam...
- Lynn Canyon Suspension BridgeLynn Canyon Suspension BridgeThe Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge is a pedestrian bridge located within Lynn Canyon Park, in the District of North Vancouver, British Columbia. It is high from the bottom of the canyon. The bridge was built as a private venture in 1912....