Sundial Bridge at Turtle Bay, Redding CA

(For more photos click on the photo above.)

By Jordan Lebovich, JBL Photography

The design for the Sundial Bridge was conceived by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, the world’s premier bridge designer. Calatrava has built bridges, airports, rail terminals, stadiums, and other structures around the world, but this is his first freestanding bridge in the United States.

The Sundial Bridge at Turtle Bay is for pedestrians and bicycles and crosses the Sacramento River in the heart of Redding, California.  With Mount Shasta visible in the distance, the river flows below you as you stand on this beautiful bridge.  The steel, glass, and granite span evokes a sense of weightlessness and the translucent decking provides for spectacular viewing at night.

 The bridge opened July 4, 2004 and forms a large sundial, hence its name.   The support tower of the bridge forms a single 217 foot mast that points due north at a cantilevered angle, casting a shadow on the ground where blocks are set to indicate the hours of the day. It is the world's largest sundial and the tip of the shadow moves at approximately one foot per minute so that the Earth's rotation about its axis can be seen with the naked eye.

The bridge is also environmentally sensitive to its river setting. The tall pylon and cable stays allow the bridge to avoid the nearby salmon-spawning habitat as there are no supports in the water.  The cable-stayed structure has an inclined, 217 foot pylon constructed of 580 tons of steel. The deck is made up of 200 tons of glass and granite and is supported by more than 4,300 feet of cable. The structure is stabilized by a steel truss, and rests on a foundation of more than 115 tons of steel and 1,900 cubic yards of concrete. The McConnell Foundation, a private, independent foundation, funded the majority of the bridge’s $23 million cost.

Near the bridge is the Turtle Bay Museum.  The Museum’s wood structure and floor-to-ceiling glass walls help the building sit “lightly” on the natural site.  Large roof overhangs on the north and west facades provide shade for visitors. Permanent and changing exhibit galleries are housed in the Museum.  For more photos, click on the picture above.