The Bridge Connection

Alligator River Swing Bridge

Children sing of London’s bridges falling down.  Simon and Garfunkle sang about a bridge over troubled water and Frank Sinatra crooned over the Brooklyn Bridge.  Pierre Boulle wrote about the bridge over the River Kwai, a notorious bridge that allowed transport of Japanese munitions during World War II.   Both in literature and song, the focus on bridges whether literal or figurative have played a part in life and history.

Bridges take many forms.  There are twin bridges, arch bridges, swing bridges, bascule bridges, lift, and even pontoon bridges.  On Imagine we love the fixed 65-foot bridges that allow us to travel down the Eastern seaboard without an interruption of our trip.  

The open on demand bridges come in second. However there are many places where bridges  open only on the hour or half hour.   These bridges are often closed completely for two hours each morning and afternoon for commuter traffic.

Alligator River Swing Bridge Open

Not getting started early enough, or planning correctly, can result in a lot of circling with other boats waiting for a bridge to open.  Imagine always opts for going offshore after Lake Worth when heading south.  The next leg would include 22 opening bridges over the 36 mile Intra Coastal Waterway between there and Fort Lauderdale.  That is too many bridges for me.

Overall Florida boasts 11,451 bridges according the U.S. Department of Transportation.  That’s a long way from the 48,492 bridges that intersect and connect Texas, the state that ranks first in the nation for bridge count.  Ohio comes in behind Texas with 27,901 bridges.   New Jersey’s bridges number 6,377.  The total number of bridges crisscrossing the United States exceeds a half million at 590,111.  

I love watching the bridges open.  From the water we listen for the deep honk of a horn blowing to warn traffic that the bridge will be closing soon.   Lights stop traffic and rails lower on the road span above.   After a few moments the opening section begins to lift or swing, in the bridge is a swing bridge.   When the light turns green Imagine slowly begins to cross under and through the bridge opening.  Once through Imagine hails the bridge tender with. “Imagine clear. Thank you for the opening.”  Most tenders come back with, “Have a great winter, or enjoy your trip.” 

Then, as in life, there is the occasional individual who just is not having a wonderful day.   One tender on a bascule bridge, scheduled to be opened, on demand, yelled that he would open when he could.  Imagine circled. The tender took his time.  The delay made it impossible for us to make the next bridge where we would wait a half hour for the next opening.   Ed generously thanked the dispirited tender for the opening and did not receive a reply.   I guess everyone is entitled to a bad day.

East coast Florida bridges behind us, Imagine heads offshore for the 31 hour, 218-nautical mile trek to Marathon in the Florida Keys.   Passing Hallendale, Fort Lauderdale and Miami about five miles offshore, fireworks light up the nighttime skyline high above the lights along the shore. A brisk 17-knot east wind makes for a great sail as Imagine enters Hawk Channel. The radar glows with yellow ovals detecting the ships moving in and out of Miami harbor.   

Morning breaks as Imagine passes Key Largo and Rodgriquez Key.  Lobster pots bounce in the aquamarine waters.  On shore I try to count the bridges that join the Florida Keys like links in a bracelet.  Quickly I lose count.  I later read that there are 42 bridges connecting the keys.  There is no mistaking the Seven Mile Bridge.  It is probably the most famous bridge in Florida connecting Marathon’s Knights Key to Little Duck Key.

The original bridge was constructed from 1909 to 1912 under the direction of Henry Flagler as part of the Florida East Coast Railways Key West Extension.  It was sometimes called the Overseas Railroad.  The Seven Mile Bridge withstood all hurricanes including the one in 1935 that washed away the railroad and many lives.   This old bridge continue to provide a link for another 40 plus years until a new bridge running parallel to the old one was completed in 1982.   The new bridge includes a 65-foot span that made the use of a drawbridge over Moser Channel obsolete.

It doesn’t matter which way one crosses a bridge.  Bridges make our lives easier. They have become idioms that we use in everyday language.  One can burn bridges, bridge the gap, mend a bridge, let the water go under the bridge, and cross that bridge when we get to it.   As for the bridge tender having a bad day, perhaps he can build a bridge and get over whatever is bothering him.

 

Because all roads are not paved

Following an unpaved road might prove bumpy or smooth.  It can also open the door to experiences that create a renewed appreciation for the interconnection of man and his world.  Imagine’s recent three day journey offshore from Beaufort, NC to St. Augustine, FL brought us not only closer to warmer weather, but also to man and nature. 

Day one found Imagine zigging and zagging in an attempt to sail around U.S. Navy and Coast Guard vessels conducting exercises in the middle of our unpaved road.  Helicopters hovered in the skies and planes circled overhead as all non-military boats were cautioned to remain a mile away from the exercise zone. 

Two hours later, four miles off course, head sail now furled as Imagine was forced to turn out of the wind, Warship 5, notified Imagine that the ship was ready to do an about turn and head further out to sea. 

As Imagine worked its way back on course.  We listened to the Coast Guard redirect another boat that appeared on the horizon.  The boat was Tyler J, sailed by Nova Scotian sailors who we had sailed with for several months during our second season at sea.   Ed hailed them on the VHF.  They were headed for Charleston and eventually Belize.  Even in a vast ocean one can meet friends traveling along the unpaved road.

It was a sunny day, seas were calm and flat during this part of our off road adventure.

Later that day, and now 40 miles off shore, Ed stood watch as a small finch landed on the lifeline and hopped into the cockpit.  Making itself at home, the small bird began finding spiders hiding in the rigging and between the folds of the canvas.   At dusk, the small bird found a quiet nook in a fold of canvas and went to bed.

After sunrise, I came up for watch and the small hitchhiker startled me as it flew in under the dodger.  

For the next five hours I watch the little bird fly around the boat and come back several times with a large moth that he would wrestle with until it was subdued and ready to eat.   Ed poured water into the top of a depression on the portside winch.  The little guy immediately began to drink. 

Back on watch, just before sundown, I watched the small light brown finch land in Ed’s beard.  “He’s getting quite friendly,” Ed said as he gently shook his head preventing his new friend from getting too chummy.  As I sat behind the helm, I felt a flutter on my shoulder.  Sure enough the tiny bird was perched there.  A slight breeze ruffled its feathers while it bobbed its head up and down, back and forth before zooming in on a spider. 

When dusk settled over the ocean, the small bird again found a spot to roost for the night.  The stars filled the sky with brilliance uninterrupted by man-made light. I watched for ships and meteors.   I talked with two commercial fishing boats on the VHF to make sure we would not come too close in the night.

After I while I watched the bright lights of the phosphorescence blink and ride the crest of the wake left when Imagine plowed through the sea.  As I looked behind, I noticed two soft red spots on the Eastern horizon.   The radar didn’t show any ship from that location. 

I began to feel a bit nervous as I see the red glow getting larger.  Suddenly the puzzle comes together.  It is a new crescent moon rising out of the sea.  It is scarlet orange, reflecting from a sun that won’t rise for several hours.  The moon continues to rise. The seas are picking up and Imagine begins to roll and pitch with the waves. I go below for a much needed rest.

Back on watch at 5:00 a.m., I look forward to watching the sunrise and our little hitchhiker as he begins what I’ve termed, “entertainment for the watch.”  The sun rises among grey bands of clouds hovering over the horizon. I notice our little friend is not moving.   I begin to fear the worse, which is confirmed after I gingerly touch our wayward hitchhiker.  Maybe birds get seasick?  Maybe the rolling boat was too much? I will probably never know what happened to our little friend.  I’m sad.  At the same time I am blessed that we had this up close and personal experience with one of God’s creatures.  As my friend Michele said later, “You can’t buy that experience in a store.”

Imagine is only a few hours from it’s destination.  In the ocean off St. Augustine, the wind is picking up.  The seas are getting larger.  In pitching seas we turn into the wind and flake the mainsail.   Imagine turns circles in the channel before the Bridge of Lions waiting in queue for the next opening.   The drawbridge opens and within minutes, Imagine is secured to a mooring ball.

Porpoises leaping out and over the waves, dolphins swimming in our wake, lights in the night… ships, stars and phosphorescence, old friends, and a one small feathered hitchhiker joined us on this leg of the unpaved road.  Who knows what adventure we will find as we continue down this watery road?