Cascade Locks Pedestrian Bridge
After a storm devastated the steel and wood pedestrian bridge on Tish Creek Trail in Cascade Locks, Oregon, the Columbia forest service turned to fiberglass-reinforced plastic (FRP). A ReadySpan bridge was installed on the scenic trail, which lies in an essential area that is habitat for endangered northern spotted owls.
Challenge
Tish Creek Trail is located in a narrow gorge within a larger gorge along the Columbia River. The fiberglass trail bridge would need to stand up to months of snow, ice and winds. The remote location, winter and spring weather and the spotted owls’ nesting season meant the installation would be logistically challenging. Local news was there to cover the event:
Solution
Bedford designed and built a 3-foot-wide by 40-foot-long brown fiberglass pedestrian bridge with cedar deck that would rest on the existing foundation. Due to its location and purpose, the bridge was outfitted with a 54-inch handrail. The stable and strong design specifications included 90 psf for pedestrian traffic, 50 psf for snow and 20 psf for wind. The fiberglass bridge was shipped fully assembled to Cascade Locks where it was helicoptered into position and volunteers secured it before nesting season began for the northern spotted owl. With the FRP trail bridge completed and installed in 2017, hikers were again able to hike the gorge and will for many, many years to come.
Read another project recap of two pedestrian bridges our team created for the Ghost Town Trail.
