Colorado Street Bridge

Los Angeles is a concrete jungle of freeways, ramps and overpasses.  I love the pockets of culture and art found in the neighborhoods, but let's face it, the freeways are ugly, congested and prone to gridlock.  Getting to one of these quaint areas requires crossing over six lanes to make your exit and often you only have a two mile warning to do so.  For yours truly, this causes major anxiety.

Every time I venture down the Ventura Freeway I look longingly at the graceful arches of the Colorado Street Bridge in Pasadena.  I want to drive on that, not this continuous landing strip of a road I'm on.  Well, a few weeks ago, I decided to finally do it.  Only I didn't drive over the bridge; I walked!

It truly is a beautiful structure.  Over and under.  I love the way the bridge curves gracefully over the Arroyo Seco, the deep canyon below it.  This was an engineering decision made by the firm of J.A.L. Waddell, from Kansas City, Missouri (another city of beautiful bridges) way back in 1913.  Before the bridge, the local population road horse-drawn carts up and down the steep sides of the canyon and crossed the stream on a flimsy wooden bridge.  I can't help but think the new bridge contributed to the growth of Los Angeles. It became part of Route 66, that famous east-west route connecting Chicago to Santa Monica.  For a long time,  it was the highest concrete bridge in the United States.  It is now on the National Register of Historic Places.

I parked my car on the corner of Grand and Green and walked the entire span of the bridge on the sidewalk to the steps on the other side.  The bridge has graceful Beaux Arts arches, cast iron lamp posts and ornate railings.  The San Gabriel Mountains serve as a backdrop.  As you walk across, you can get a good look at the impressive Federal Court of Appeals building with its distinctive dome.   Directly underneath is the Arroyo Seco Park, a hidden gem in the city of Pasadena.  I tell you, it's a different world once you get off those god-awful freeways!