Cady Way Trail's Tied Arch Bridge

I've been meaning to go bike riding along the Cady Way Trail for a while now, specifically over the bridge crossing 436, but it seems I never have my bicycle when I'm in the area. Recently, I was riding along Colonial Drive and happened to have a unicycle in the car, so I decided to see how far I could get before dark. I started at Fashion Square Mall, not quite knowing exactly where the trail traveled. I eventually made it to the bridge and made it my turn around point. It ended up being my longest ride ever on a unicycle (just over 8 miles), but I had fun!

The bridge over 436 is a basket-handle tied arch bridge. This basically means it's and arch with the roadway suspended by vertical cables. It's a very nice looking bridge that I would rate near the top of my favorite Central Florida pedestrian bridges.

Here's some of the strangely fascinating engineering details of the bridge...



And the view of the car dealers and fast food restaurants below on 436:

I need to come back with a bicycle and ride along the rest of the trail. From what I saw of Cady Way, it's nowhere as nice as Seminole County's trails, but it's still an interesting ride.

Sombrero Key Lighthouse

I recently found these old pictures of the Sombrero Key Lighthouse that were taken back in 2002. I was so proud of my BIG 2.5 megapixel camera back then.

The Sombrero Key Lighthouse is located off the coast of Marathon in the Florida Keys and marks a reef that is now an attraction for snorkeling tours. I personally am amazed at the engineering behind these skeleton lighthouses. All those little metal trusses and cables fitting together into a structure that can survive hurricanes...