GATLINBURG, Tenn. (WATE) – It’s thrilling, or scary, depending on whether you look down and it opens in three days. North America’s longest pedestrian suspension bridge, known as the Gatlinburg Skybridge, opens Friday.
The SkyBridge will add to the Gatlinburg SkyLife attraction, sought by families around the county since 1954. The owners are wrapping up work on a SkyDeck observation area, which will complete the Gatlinburg SkyLift Park.
The bridge offers an exclusive view of three of the highest peaks in the Smoky Mountains: Clingman’s Dome, Mt. Guyot, and Mt. LeConte.
Here are six things you may not know about the Gatlinburg SkyBridge:
1. It hangs 680 feet long, longer than two football fields
2. The record-setting bridge is made up of 129 cedar panels, with three glass panels taking up 15 feet in the middle
3. You can get from end to end in about 90 seconds (if you’re walking with a purpose)
4. It can hold more than 200,000 pounds. (If 500 people, weighing 400 pounds each, were standing on the bridge, it still would not exceed the bridge’s weight limit)
5. The SkyBridge hangs 140 feet above the ground at it’s highest point
6. It closes when wind speeds reach above 30 mph
