For Sparky and myself, curiosity drives passion which in turn fuels our life's engine. Our passion was capturing the story of both unbuilding the Grace (1929 - 2007) and Pearman (1966 - 2007) Bridges and discovering the unbuilders. It takes a lot of passion to track a project from July 2005 until April 2007 - rain, shine, hurricanes or moving to Singapore. We discovered the joy of discovery learning. Ken Canty opened the front door for us - then Steve Testa, Ponch Billingsley and Mickey Rogers opened many side doors. Below are the highlights of what we discovered, who we met and what we learned.
And a reminder from T.S. Eliot (East Coker from the Four Quartets)
Home is where one starts from. As we grow older The world becomes stranger, the pattern more complicated Of dead and living. Not the intense moment Isolated, with no before and after, But a lifetime burning in every moment And not the lifetime of one man only But of old stones that cannot be deciphered.
Linda and her husband often walk around MacRitchie reservoir - about 13 km. Ellen frequently joins them - and discovered the Treetops Bridge and so today this was my adventure. What an adventure - camera, tripod, umbrella, flash - and about 6 hours of walking / photos
A map of the TreeTop trail. We started in the upper right and I finished in the lower middle section
Here is the plan and specifications of the TreeTop suspension bridge. Just like the Ravenel Bridge - there are two backspans and a mainspan. Unlike the Ravenel Bridge - the mainspan is 150 m and instead of 8 lanes - there is one, width = 80 cm
The backspan with Ellen in front
Just to give you some idea of the scale - here is a tree - about 30 meters high - like the length of Manny's boom on his crane
and a view from the bridge
The mainspan
Looking back from the other end
This is a one way bridge
and looking up one of the suspension cables
the backspan exit
and the walkway - from the bridge to the forest / jungle
Bees in action - part 1
part 2
part 3
and steps down into the forest
It is monsoon season - so some interesting photos of flowers with water drops (about an hour later - there was a serious rain
Here is what in the US we would call a grasshopper. Here, I call them either a flower hopper or leaf hopper. This one is a flower hopper
from behind
and from the side - just like a grasshopper - except there is no grass in this rain forest
and from the front - very cooperative leafhopper
An interesting web
and all about catepillars - not the kind Michael and Jackie drive
This was just a fun photo
A dragon fly with 1 pair of wings
and a dragon fly with 2 pairs of wings
from the top
another fun photo
another from the top
From the side
and from the front
A butterfly
and Nephila maculata - a cousin of Nephila clavipes that lives around Charleston
Actually - wife at the bottom and two husbands (orange blobs) near the top
She can dance
Husband #1
and husband #2
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.
C. Frank Starmer