Kinzua Bridge State Park - McKean County, PA

 Did you know that Pennsylvania was once home to the highest and longest railroad viaduct in the world? Construction of the Kinzua Bridge Viaduct began in 1881 and ended in 1882.  The original viaduct was made of iron and weighed around 3,000,000 pounds. The viaduct was reconstructed in 1900 with steel to safely serve larger trains and weighed over 6,500,000 pounds after it's reconstruction was completed. The bridge was over 300 feet high and over 2000 feet long. 

The Kinzua Bridge State Park was signed into law in 1963, just 4 years after freight traffic was stopped. An excursion train continued to use the Kinzua Bridge between the years of  1987 and 2002. It was determined in 2002 that the bridge needed inspected and upon inspection it was found that the bridge was unsafe. The bridge was then closed to all traffic, including pedestrian.  The following year, the bridge was struck by a F1 tornado and 11 of the towers fell. This tornado struck the bridge after the repairs had begun in February of that same year. The Kinzua Bridge State Park is a 339 acre park in McKean County. Activities at this state park include picnicking, hiking, trout fishing, and biking.

After 11 towers fell from being stuck by a tornado in 2003, the Kinzua Bridge Skywalk was born. The skywalk was built upon 6 of the original restored towers. The skywalk is 600 feet long and leads to an observation deck with a partial glass floor. The partial glass floor allows visitors to view the steel towers that were reconstructed below. The observation deck gives a perfect view of the 11 fallen towers scattered across the Kinzua Gorge. The skywalk had it's grand opening on September 15, 2011. The grand opening of the skywalk was over 8 years after the towers had fallen.

The Kinzua State Park offers many different educational options to the community. Some of these educational opportunities include teacher training, school groups, tour groups, and special events. The skywalk and some trials at the Kinzua State Park may be closed due to severe weather so it is important to check the current weather conditions before planning your trip. The current weather condition can be found on the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation & Natural Resources site. The hours of operation change throughout the year and with the seasons so it is important to review those as well. The park's visitor center and park office opened in 2016. This park office gives visitors an opportunity to learn about the state park and interact with the park's staff. It include both self guided and interactive activities across two different levels.