Tonight and tomorrow night I'll be posting some of the photos I took in downtown Tucson over the past couple of weeks, but held back until now. This entry is all about one specific landmark; tomorrow I'll be covering two very different examples of the same kind of structure, and a few other landmarks along the way.
Those of you who saw the announcement entry for the "Landmarks" Challenge have already seen a piece of the thing I'll be showing you tonight. But what is it? Can you tell?
That's only a small part of it. Perhaps if you see the whole thing at once, it will be a little clearer what it is:
(I've uploaded larger-than-usual versions of this photo and a few others on mavarin.com, so feel free to doubleclick for a closer look!)Still not terribly clear, is it? Unfortunately, I've never found a really good vantage point for photographing the whole structure. Trees and traffic signals get in the way. But how about if I zoom in on the other end of the thing? That should identify it for sure!
Yes, it's a snake, a giant snake made of steel and concrete. To be specific, it's the Diamondback footbridge that crosses Broadway Blvd, immediately east of downtown Tucson, Arizona.
Our Diamondback undulates over cars and concrete, near appropriate desert landscaping.
It even looks snakelike from underneath, although a real snake would find this position precarious, if not downright impossible.
The Diamondback Bridge is more artistic than functional. Few pedestrians have any reason to cross it, except as exercise. To get to it from the south you have to climb up this path, and turn right at the rattle. To get to it from downtown you have to walk several blocks (as I did), and through a few ground level crosswalks. But that's hardly the point, is it? One doesn't really cross this bridge to get to the other side. One crosses it because it's part of a fun and pretty walk that quickly leaves the downtown traffic behind.
Here, for example, is a guy out walking his puppy. Don't tell Animal Control, but the puppy's not on a leash!
Once you get across Broadway, the bridge dumps you inevitably onto a pedestrian footpath with no obvious exit to either side:
Two weeks ago when I took these photos, I followed this path at least half a mile, finally exiting onto a quiet residential street in an historic neighborhood. I was very close to the old rail depot, but on the wrong side of the tracks, with construction in between. What I saw on the rest of that long, interesting walk I leave to your imagination - until tomorrow night!
A quick note of explanation to those of you who may be new to the Round Robin Photo Challenges: Unlike the Weekend Assignment and the Monday Photo Shoot, the RRPC is once every two weeks rather than weekly, and the topic is announced in advance for a specific posting date. You can post up to six days late, but for maximum traffic to your blog we recommend posting on the announced day. For further details, please see our Welcome Entry. We've been delighted to see lots of new Robins joining us recently., but there's always room for you!
Now go see what the other Robins have found for this week's Challenge:
Linking List
Carly - POSTED!
Ellipsis
http://ellipsissuddenlycarly.blogspot.com
Karen - POSTED!
Outpost Mâvarin
http://outmavarin.blogspot.com
Sandra - POSTED!
Strong Chemistry
http://strongchemistry.blogspot.com
Betty (canceled due to illness and a death in the family)
Biker Betty
http://bikerbetty.blogspot.com
Jill - POSTED!
Letting Crazy Take A Spin
http://lettingcrazytakeaspin.blogspot.com/
Martha - POSTED!
Perception
http://journals.aol.com/lifes2odd/perception/
Lisa - POSTED!
Lisa's Chaos
http://lisaschaos.blog-city.com
Sandy- POSTED!
Myanderings
http://www.myanderings-myanderings.blogspot.com
Shorty ***Welcome New Member*** - POSTED!
I Couldn't Help Myself
http://icouldnthelpmyself.blogspot.com
Gattina - POSTED!
Keyhole Pictures
http://gattina-keyholepictures.blogspot.com
Nan - POSTED!
Life is Like a Lunchbox
http://www.shawnanigans.net
Rachel ***Welcome New Member***
Rachel Schell, Spokane Photographer
http://blog.rachelschell.com/
Janet - POSTED!
fondofsnape
http://www.fondofsnape.com
Vicki - POSTED!
Maraca
http://mymaracas.blogspot.com/
Kim ***Welcome New Member***
Rainy Day Diamonds
http://rainydaydiamonds.blogspot.com
Marie - POSTED!
Photographs & Memories
http://journals.aol.com/mariebm56/PhotographsAndMemories
Chrissea
Chris-seas Corner
http://chrisseas-corner.tripod.com
Teena
It's all about me!
http://purple4mee.blogspot.com
Robinella ***Welcome New Member*** - POSTED!
Robin's Nest
http://robinellablog.wordpress.com
Janet ***Welcome New Member***
From The Planet Of Janet
http://fromtheplanetofjanet.blogspot.com
Suzanne R - POSTED!
Living . . . Suzanne R's Life
http://newsuzannerslife.blogspot.com
Nancy - POSTED!
Nancy Luvs Pix
http://journals.aol.com/nhd106/Nancyluvspix
Pamela ***Welcome New Member*** - POSTED!
The Dust Will Wait
http://thedustwillwait.blogspot.com
Kim - POSTED!
Nekked Lizard Adventures
http://nekkedlizardadventures.typepad.com
Duane - POSTED!
Life, the Universe and Everything
http://fdtate.blogspot.com
Gina - POSTED!
Gina's Space
http://journals.aol.com/rbrown6172/Ginasspace
Momma***Welcome New Member***
Sandcastle Momma - POSTED!
http://sandcastlemomma.blogspot.com
Molly ***Welcome New Member*** - POSTED!
Return of the White Robin
http://returnofthewhiterobin.blogspot.com
Sarah - POSTED!
Charish Me
http://charish-me.blogspot.com
Kiva - POSTED!
Ecletic Granny
http://eclecticgranny.blogspot.com/
Jama Hameed ***Welcome New Member*** - POSTED!
A Moment In Time
http://journals.aol.com/jamahameed/a-moment-in-time/
Jennie ***Welcome New Member*** - POSTED!
PrairieAir
http://prairieair.blogspot.com/
More about the bridge:
Our Metal-bending Work - Snake Bridge, Tucson AZ
'Basket Bridge' is missing link | www.tucsoncitizen.com ®
Tucson region receives ‘Gold Award’ as bicycle friendly community
Karen
13 comments:
I love your landmark photos, very interesting and really cool! I'll be stopping by to see what else you'll be posting :-)
wow that is an amazing bridge! How cool!. Thanks for sharing with us :-)
Hey Karen :)
I LOVE the bridge, it is a true piece of outdoor puplic art that would have me fascinated if I were there to see it! So interesting, so pretty. And believe me, it takes a lot for me to say that, due to my extreme fear of snakes! LOL. ;) Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful!
Always, Carly
What incredible architecture and your photos have captured it beautifully! I am not normally a fan of snakes but this is one snake I would really enjoy seeing.
Wow....fantastic! SUCH a cool bridge...and you captured it perfectly!!
Nancy
PS. If this RR was your idea and not Carly's I apologize for giving her credit!!
http://journals.aol.com/nhd106/Nancyluvspix/entries/2008/01/26/landmarks/2143
Your rattlesnake is a fantastic landmark that is quite unique. I have entered this challenge too. I hope that I followed all of the rules.
The first few photos had me totally mystified, and I had no idea what it could be until you explained. That is truly an interesting snake, and I would walk on it just for the fun of it if I were there, too! Neat photos and narration, Karen!
Awesome subject! You got terrific photos of a very hard thing to photograph!
Just terrific.
This is a fun structure...Ü
Very cool design~
Marie
Well, now I need to eventually get to Tuscon. That is so cool. Cheers to the planners who thought that one up. Thanks for sharing!
I'm really freaked out by that bridge... rattle rattle rattle.
My newphew lives in Tucson. I must ask him about that bridge now!!
That's a very special architecture ! The architect must love snakes. But I like it very much it looks so nice in the landscape ! Really just like a huge snake.
I love your bridge! I've only been to Tucson once and you've made me want to come back! The only thing I remember about my trip was that the ice machine at our hotel was broken. :(
I want to walk on the bridge and I will come back to see what you add tomorrow. :)
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