Natural Bridges

A natural bridge or natural arch appears as advertised. These geological formations erode in such a way as to leave behind an opening beneath stone that continues to stand. Water seems to be the most common denominator. Before today I never realized that a Natural Arch and Bridge Society existed “to support the interests of both amateur arch enthusiasts and serious researchers of natural arches and bridges alike.” It does, however, as I soon discovered during my search. It also provides an excellent resource for these topics including a picture gallery.

I knew natural bridges existed in multiple places. I’ve also visited several of them including some of the famous ones located at Arches National Park (my visit). I didn’t realize they occurred somewhat commonly. Examples can be observed throughout the world. I’ll feature several instances located in the United States, all of which feature the phrase “Natural Bridge” in their their official names. That still leaves many worthy candidates untouched in spite of my attempt to keep the list down to a manageable size.


Natural Bridge

The natural bridge in Virginia may be THE natural bridge, due primarily to its historical pedigree more than anything. George Washington supposedly surveyed this site personally in 1750. It later became part of property owned by Thomas Jefferson. He purchased it from the crown in 1774 when Britain still oversaw Virginia as a colony. This stone arch lent a name to surrounding Rockbridge County. Twelve Mile Circle hereby grants a seal of approval for that wonderful geo-recognition.

Natural Bridge appears in Google Maps satellite view. Observers can easily see the small river that carved a path and created the arch. U.S. Route 11 crosses directly above it although that doesn’t make much difference to tourists: fences constructed on both sides of the highway keep visitors from stopping atop the bridge, peeking over the side, and becoming a road hazard (street view).


Natural Bridges National Monument

Owachomo laban by Laban712 on en / Public domain; via Wikimedia Commons
Owachomo

Natural Bridges National Monument appears within Utah’s portion of the four-corners area (map). Flash floods rather than regular stream flow contributed to the creation of three major arches. These periodic floods undercut stone walls over time. The National Park Service describes the names of the arches:

“… the General Land Office assigned the Hopi names ‘Sipapu,’ ‘Kachina’ and ‘Owachomo’ in 1909. Sipapu means ‘the place of emergence,’ an entryway by which the Hopi believe their ancestors came into this world. Kachina is named for rock art on the bridge that resembles symbols commonly used on kachina dolls. Owachomo means ‘rock mound,’ a feature atop the bridge’s east abutment.”


Natural Bridges State Beach

I couldn’t find natural bridges on Google Maps street view. They tend to cluster in hard-to-reach spots away from roads. Fortunately I got luckier with Natural Bridges State Beach in Santa Cruz, California. Here the eroding water comes from the wave action of surrounding Monterey Bay.

“This beach, with its famous natural bridge, is an excellent vantage point for viewing shore birds, migrating whales, and seals and otters playing offshore. Further along the beach, tidepools offer a glimpse of life beneath the sea. Low tides reveal sea stars, crabs, sea anemones, and other colorful ocean life.”


Natural Bridge Caverns

Natural Bridge Cavern entrance. Photo by Tim Wilson; (CC BY 2.0)
Bridge at Cavern Entrance

Natural Bridge Caverns (map) doesn’t offer a natural bridge inside a cavern, sad to say. Rather, it identifies a feature located just outside of the entrance to this largest commercial cave in Texas. The formation presents an interesting evolution. In this instance water created a sinkhole and the natural bridge remained when surrounding terrain fell into the hole.


Natural Bridge Battlefield

One only battlefield that I know of maintains an association with a natural bridge. It sits near Tallahassee, Florida where the St. Marks River falls into a sinkhole and reappears a little while later. Notice the water on the Google Maps satellite view and you can see where that happens. The Natural Bridge Battlefield State Historic Site commemorates the namesake battle:

“During the final weeks of the Civil War, a Union flotilla landed at Apalachee Bay planning to capture Fort Ward (San Marcos de Apalache Historic State Park) and march north to the state capital. With a timely warning, volunteers from the Tallahassee area – Confederate soldiers, old men and young boys – met the Union forces at Natural Bridge and successfully repelled three major attacks. The Union troops were forced to retreat to the coast and Tallahassee was the only Confederate capital east of the Mississippi not captured by the Union.”


Natural Bridge Avenue

What’s the deal with Natural Bridge Avenue in St. Louis, Missouri? A natural bridge doesn’t exits there. Actually, the road used to extend much farther. The expansion of Lambert Airport and the routing of Interstate 70 obliterated portions of it. The reason may no longer exist but the name remains.


Totally Unrelated

Remember the story of Delmar Delaware/Maryland and the cross-border services they shared? I found another example elsewhere in the news recently although the reasons differed considerably.

Comments

6 responses to “Natural Bridges”

  1. Joe Avatar
    Joe

    Just to clarify, the Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Road in St. Louis had no relation to the road being shortened over the years. The natural bridge, when it existed, was located very close to the eastern terminus of the road just north of downtown. Unfortunately, the bridge was lost to expansion and sanitation when the nearby creek was turned into a sewer channel. (http://www.naturalarches.org/db/arches/mo279.htm)

    It’s kind of funny how many people use roads in their areas and never stop to think about the history behind the name. While I always figured Natural Bridge Road in St. Louis involved a natural bridge at one time, I had overlooked another recently featured name on 12MC…Delmar. St. Louis’s version of Delmar is a popular street that also took its name from Delaware and Maryland thanks to a couple of landowners from those states. Delmar contains a couple notable features and is worth a read (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delmar_Boulevard).

    1. Twelve Mile Circle Avatar

      Thanks for the clarification Joe, and also for finding the odd connection between the two Delmar places.

  2. Ken Avatar
    Ken

    There is also an Ayer’s Natural Bridge State Park in Wyoming. It is tucked away in a little alcove just south of 1-25 (1-25 runs east west for this stretch). This alcove is very lush and very different from the rest of the prairie. It also is very close to the Oregon Trail and many travelers would stop over at the Bridge. If memory serves you can walk all they way across. If you are ever in Wyoming I reccommend that you catch this gem.

  3. Alex Avatar
    Alex

    Probably the most famous British example is Durdle Door on Devon’s Jurassic Coast

  4. Peter Avatar

    I’m somewhat embarrassed to admit that I have no recollection of the natural bridge outside Natural Bridge Cavern even though my wife and I toured the cavern on a visit to San Antonio a few years ago. Guess I was in too much of a rush to get into the cavern to notice much. The cavern was spectacular, if you’re in the area it is very definitely worth a visit.

  5. Jimmy Emerson Avatar

    There’s also a Natural Bridge in Alabama–supposedly the longest east of the Rockies.

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