Today's Most Popular Video
Nov 9, 2008 11:15 pm US/Central
Finding Minnesota: Jay Cooke's Swinging Bridge
CARLTON, Minn. (WCCO) ―
-
-
Visitors stand on the swinging bridge in Jay Cooke State Park.
CBS
-
-
The swinging bridge in Jay Cooke State Park has repeatedly fallen to spring floods, as shown here.
CBS
-
-
Here the swinging bridge in Jay Cooke State Park is shown under construction during the 1920s.
CBS
-
-
Another historical view of the swinging bridge in Jay Cooke State Park.
CBS
On a crisp and sun-splashed fall day, the lazy curl of wood smoke gently rises into an indigo sky. A sweet smell emanates from a stone chimney, drawing a busload of tourists into an old granite lodge. Sitting on wooden benches are dozens of curious kids and their teachers.
"My name is Kris. And I'm going to teach you a little bit about skulls and bones."
School children from Cloquet, Minn. listen intently as Kris Hiller teaches them about the bones and the beauty of the north woods.
"What kind of food would an animal like this eat?" Hiller asks, carefully gripping a chalky-white animal skull in her hands.
Hiller is a Department of Natural Resources naturalist at Jay Cooke State Park near Carlton. It's one of Minnesota's oldest state parks, dating back to 1915. That's when the now defunct St. Louis River Power Company donated 2,300 acres of pine and birch forest lining both sides of the rugged St. Louis.
Creating an accessible park created a bit of a dilemma for the state. Developers needed a way to get park visitors from one side of the river gorge to the other.
In 1924, they had their solution with the erecting of the park's first cable and wood suspension bridge. Through the years that bridged changed form but never function.
It was frequently washed out by spring flooding. In 1934, the bridge was rebuilt by workers with the famed CCC, the Civilian Conservation Corps. Then came 1950 and once again the bridge fell victim to the raging river. Three years later it was raised higher and reopened as the bridge many of us remember from our childhoods.
"When you went across it, it truly was a swinging bridge," exclaimed park visitor Vickie Price. "Walking across today, this is nothing compared to what it used to be."
Today, the bridge has been strengthened and doesn't swing and sway like it did in years past. Still, it has a striking effect on all who cross it. Getting across it is an adventure in itself for those brave enough to endure the squeaks and creaks.
"It makes them feel like they're almost going to go into the water," said Price.
For the Cloquet children on their field trip, the squeaks and sways bring a sense of adventure to a park brimming with raw beauty, a beauty Jay Cooke State Park doesn't hide. Its rugged and rocky terrain cuts through some of the most scenic hiking trails Minnesota has to offer. More than 50 miles of hiking trails wind through the woods. In the winter, there are miles of snowmobile and ski trails to be explored as well.
And be it spring, summer, winter or fall, your camera is sure to come out of its case, drawn to the breathtaking beauty of waterfalls and rapids all along the St. Louis River gorge.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Man Recalls Night Friend Was Shot By Cop
Click to enlarge
Click to enlarge
Click to enlarge
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
Reporting
