Neal Smith Trail Bridge
A few weeks ago I went to Des Moines, Iowa. I also went to Kansas City. More pixelated documentation will follow of these fancy midwestern towns, but for now I start with a bridge. I start with a bridge because why not? If you haven't noticed yet, I'm a big fan of bridges. Not all bridges of course. Some bridges are boring, lame, and uninspiring. Some bridges were clearly built by governments that didn't value the American dream of blowing excessive money on cool looking things. Those run of the mill bridges do not get pictures taken of them. They do not get featured on this blog. I only care for the special bridges, bridges that stretch the possibilities of engineering and highlight creative design and unique construction. This pedestrian bridge in downtown Des Moines certainly fits the bill. It spans the Des Moines River and connects downtown Des Moines to what is referred to as the East Village. And I know I speak for most of Des Moines when I say thank goodness for this seemingly pretty expensive bridge. If this bridge didn't exist, Des Moinians would have to walk nearly .2 miles south to reach another bridge. Google Maps says that would take almost 3 minutes to successfully navigate by foot. That is 3 minutes that the average Des Moinian does not have time for. Though I may have just not so subtly and mostly sarcastically proven this bridge to be kind of pointless, it is a beautifully pointless bridge and I am glad they built it.
