Roanoke Rapids herald. [volume] (Roanoke Rapids, N.C.) 1914-192?, 1921-06-17


hm IS 1900 feet higher than the South rim.
Presumably you will he able to use this sliSpen.
sion bridge this season. The national park service
n working on the bridge now aud has been for
some time. But you can easily guess thar building
MiS bridge is some considerable jOb-eSpecially
II You have ever travelled Bright Angel TRAIL down
which all the materials and tools have to be
packed. Anyway here's sample of the kind of
aonss that may happen any minute on that
famous trail.
Homer ]. Arm is one of the packers engaged In
getting stuff down Bright Angel trail. The other
day he was taking down Il string of animals Sew.
tra Of them were loaded with INT for blasting.
At one of the sudden turns one Of the pack animals
slipped. The rest got excited. Pretty soon one
animal went off the trail All eleven in the string
we're tied together, Before long two more were
dragged off the trail About this time Arm sue.
seeded in getting into the middle of the mixup.
He cut the other eight animals loose and they
Naid on the trsil
Of course all three of the animals that fell or
rere killed One fell 900 feet-without injurng
his pack. One fell POO feet-whout exploding
Abe $50 pounds Of INT in his pack And that's
what getting the bridge stuff down Bright Angel
trail is like.
A look at the map gives the lay Of the land.
Bright Angel trail begins near FL Tovar on the
South rim and winds down to the Colorado at
She Bottom OF Granite gorge. Hermit trail begins
farther to the west and also goes down 10 the
river. Part of the way down, the Tonto trail
running east and west, connects Hermit and
Bright Angel trails
At the foot of Bright Angel trail there Is nm
aerial cabetram, which is used TO ferry across
4euturesome visitors The cross marks the site
Of she suspension bridge The new trail will rum
sorth along Bright Angel creek. The visitor will
ascend to the North rim at Bright Angel point
Il is 10 miles across the Grand canyon here
The descent from FL Tovar to the river is about
$500 feet The North river is about G,0O0 feet
above the floor of the Grand canyon.
The view from the North rim is radically differ
tnt The temples lie in Its foreground. One looks
down upon them at close range. The Granite
gorge is miles in the background and the opposite
rim presents an apparently straight wall. The OBJ
server Is twelve fifteen hundred feet higher
Than the south rim and sees over II the desert
plan for many miles south, with a far horizon
of distant mountains. Many who have seen both
prefer the south rim view, which has the temples
In broad perspective and confines the eye to the
spectacle Of the canyon. Others prefer the north
rim because of its clOseness to the temples and its
srasp of distant horizons In the future thousands
of travellers will not be content until they see the
canyon from both rims.
Building the suspension bridge, once the ma.
teral Is on the spot, will not be difficult. The
worst of the job Is getting the stuff to the site
ON mule-back. The material for the bridge will
consist principally of steel WIRE seveneighths and
three-eighths of an inch respectively in diameter;
heavy wooden tmbers strips of flooring OF nine
foot length and tools and blasting powder. The
matter of getting the long cables down is gong TO
require the Harvesting of at least four mules tan
dem and strnging of the load between them. The
main cables will weigh between 100 and sou
nounds apiece A cable will be gathered into sew
eral coils, with about twenty to thirty feet OF
slack between each coll. These coiled cables will
then be put on mules, coll to each.
At the bridge site an anchor of steel rails and
concrete viii be constructed In the solid rock.
The upper cables will then be carried across to the
porth side and secured In like fashion. From end
No end these upper cables will measure about sou
feet Eighty feet below them the floor Of the
Aridge will be anchored to the walls of the gorge.
gom the overhead cables side cables will come
sown and run through the heavy timbers The
pine-foot pIanking will be riveted to these rafters
md hog mesh wiring will be strung along either
side Of the bridge to protect tourists. The bridge
VIII be built forty feet above the ordinary height