Planning a Trip to San Francisco? Never Miss Golden Gate Bridge
Opened in 1937 this bridge is the most famous of all landmarks and was once the longest suspension bridges to have ever connected two landmasses. Prior to the bridge mostly ferries used to transport people and goods from the Marin County to San Francisco, CA. While experts debated on the feasibility of building a bridge for close to 60 years it was only in the early 20th century that the idea gained some sort of a momentum.
There were a lot of people who were responsible for the conception of the bridge. However principal among these were Charles Ellis, J Strauss and Irving Morrow. While Strauss was the chief designer he had very less experience when it came to adopting the cable suspension bridges. It was decided that the Golden Gate Bridge be a suspension bridge since it was considered the most practical approach for bridging the 1.7 mile stretch.
At the time of its completion it was the longest bridge and was built over almost 4 years. The cost of building the entire structure came to about $35 million. This bridge has 6 lanes for automobiles, pedestrians, and bicycle riders and sees a daily traffic of over hundred thousand vehicles.
This is a very popular spot for photography and this bridge in itself holds distinction of being one of the most recognizable symbols of ingenuity as well as engineering excellence apart from being the most photographed. If you plan to cover the entire bridge then its best to do it on a cycle. There is no toll fee for cyclists and the bridge's east sidewalk is open throughout the year.
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