Tacoma Narrows Bridge

B

B~C

New member
We're launching at Swantown tomorrow and working our way to Bell Harbor with stops at J cove and Gig. I've read all I can find about passing through the bridge construction zone, even printed off a handy map telling me to stay 500' from any construction and to leave no wake when lifting is in progress. Does anybody have any pearls of bridge wisdom one should know about?
thanks
 
Bridge wisdom not found here, but hey, Ken and Marge, enjoy the cruise north and your stay in downtown Seattle.
:rainbow
 
Thanks Catdude, we aim to have a good time. I always thought it would be a kick to do the Bell Harbor thing, can't beat deluxe water side lodging in Seattle for 20some bucks :) ....good to see you scratchig around in the pub again
 
Take your camera! It is pretty cool. Your timing may be right to see the first road deck section lifted from the barge. If there is a barge right in the middle of the span, that means they are getting ready to lift. This will be at a slack tide (current). I was there today, and they are working on the first deck section, now on the lifting barge. It is anchored just south of the ship.

My only pearl is never get directly upstream of the towers. That would be a bad place to loose power, or get distracted. Last winter a fisheries boat stopped some fishermen, then left to do paper work. They drifted along as the fisherman watched in horror as the fisheries boat drifted into one of the towers. The current smashed the boat against the tower and the boat turned over. The two aboard were pulled from the water, and were ok. :? It may not look like a river when you are out there, but it is. If you keep your distance from the towers, tugs, ship, and barges, and keep an extra eye out for flotsam, it is an easy passage. Robbi

Have a wonderful trip.
 
I went through the Tacoma Narrows a few times this year. The last time was when I went to the Bellingham CBGT a few weeks ago. You want to avoid any barges or boats in the water, but also look up and do not go directly under any workers on the lines or bridge. If they drop something it could hurt if it hits you. Just use some common sense and you should not have any problems.
 
thanks for the pointers, we'll have the camera armed and ready. We'll probably pass through there at low tide or early on the flood so the current shouldn't be to bad, it would be a bummer to get hung up on a tower.
 
B~C

It was good to meet and talk with both of you at Swantown in Olympia today! Hope you have a great time this week.

Dennis and Georgia on Notayot
 
Ah, red kayaks on top! It was Blue-C that I saw headed north this am. I was beach fishing on Fox Island when I saw them headed towards the Narrows Bridge. Just now figured out who it was. Nice looking boat. Robbi
 
hey all, just back from our South Sound sampler. We sure had an enjoyable time. The bridge construction turned out to be no problem. Monday when we went through they had the barge with a section on it in the middle of the channel, we just scooted around to the east of it, quite an operation.

It was nice to meet the Notayot crew as we were putting in and pry some valuable local info from them (the truck wasn't impounded and, we didn't get barked at for wakes :) )

Thanks for the kind words Robbi, how was the fishing?

Colvosview, durn, we where in Jarrel Cove Sunday night or I would have suggested some music in the park Tuesday evening in Gig Harbor :) drat, next time.

Anyhoots, thanks again for the bridge info, I was worried about getting a big ticket after reading about all the safety zones and warnings....I guess worrying is a cheap hobby
 
Music in the park would have been fun, Ken. Hope you had a good enough time that you'll be back in the area. Did you come into Gig Harbor? If so, you might have seen my boat sitting on an air dock at the big white house across the harbor from the city dock. The big white house belongs to my employer, who is also a good friend and gives me free moorage. What a perk!
 
yes, we ventured into town and did the historic walking tour. You bet we spotted your boat, there's something about C-Ds, if there is one in the harbor, I'll spot it. On our way out we toured around the harbor and got a closer look, nice boat but I'd be hesitant to moor it in front of that white shanty :)...Gig Harbor sure is a nice area.

From what I heard on the radio, I hope you don't work in Tacoma, that bridge traffic sounds just brutal with the construction going on

well be back
 
Yeah, that shanty worries me sometimes. Our standing joke is that if our friends were really considerate, they'd move closer to the mouth of the harbor so we wouldn't have to have that long, slow ride out through the no-wake zone. :D Fortunately, we don't have to do the bridge commute. Life is good.
Yeah, the little boat is nice enough - just your basic old angler without any bells and whistles. I'd like to get the gel coat rejuvenated or maybe try painting it, so it would be a little spiffier, but it suits us pretty well.
And now from the shameless commerce division. My big white house friend owns Arabella's Landing Marina in the harbor. If you're in the mood for showers and laundry, or if you'd just like to know you have a reservation as you head out, it's a nice place. There have been a couple of brat gatherings there.
 
Ken, The fishing was OK. As a friend of mine says, "hooked 3, landed 5". :wink: Went back today, but not as many fish showing. I did have on a nice 5 to 7 pounder for about 2 minutes until it threw the hook. That is a thrill on a 6 weight rod. Heck, that is a thrill any way you look at it! Beautiful day on the water. Glad you had a good trip. Robbi

Looks like section # 2 on the bridge is going up tonight or in the morning. They were moving the barge into place at 5:30pm. Section 3 will be a good one to watch them lift. It will be "trapezed" into position because it is above the shore.
 
I just finished watching on TV, Modern Marvels...Engineering Failures...and the Tacoma Narrows Bridge was a real swinger in the old days. Are they putting the swing back into her...it sure looked like fun
to cross way back when....when the wind blew.
 
FYI

The new Tacoma Narrows Bridge will open to traffic on the 15th and will begin to collect tolls on the 16th.

Tolls (EAST bound only) $3.00 two axels, three axels $4.50, four axels $6.00.
Tolls with "Good to Go" transponders
$1.75, $2.65 and $3.50.

Anyone can apply for a transponder by setting up an account (you can do this online) with a minimum of $30. This allows you to by pass the toll booth and your toll will be deducted automatically from your account. I think you can run the account down to $6.00 before they want you to "re-load". The transponder is a sticker that affixes to your windshield below the rearview mirror.

When the new bridge opens, the old bridge will close for a number of months for retrofitting, so don't expect improvements in traffic until both are open.

Robbi
 
Good News. They are NOT closing the old bridge for refitting. When the new bridge opens tomorrow, it will have 4 eastbound lanes, and the old bridge will have 3 west bound lanes, with a 4th lane closed for work for a few months, and then all 4 lanes will be opened. It will be crazy for a day or two as they sort out new on and off ramps and remove concrete barriers (I am staying away until that gets sorted out) but, it should be a huge improvement for traffic flow.

Robbi
 
Robbi":2ycfvfgp said:
Good News. They are NOT closing the old bridge for refitting.
Robbi
Click to expand...

This is good, because the last time the state did that trick, a bridge sunk (remember the I-90 windstorm/sinking?)
 
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