Michael,

This is a blog-worthy story and album of a once-in-a-lifetime experience of going up 750 feet to the top of the Golden Gate Bridge. My cousin Dan Larsen did this despite acrophobia and a brand new unused camera. Enjoy!

–rakkity

Hello Swing members,
Dan Larsen from Alameda, CA, here.
This has been a while in coming, and with Gerry Conley’s gentle, yet relentless persuasion, I believe I have reached an understanding with my editing program to package these photos up and send them out. I think that they will come in a separate email addressed to Swing from my photoshop program, as I haven’t learned all of the functions yet. But for those who have seen them and have asked, this is the answer to how I got them; for those of you who have no idea of what I’m talking about, the pictures, if they arrive, should be viewed first and this story may make better sense.

A client of mine sat on the board of directors for the Golden Gate Bridge Authority and a perk of her position was to get her family and close friends (those that can stomach it) to the top – as in top of the Golden Gate Bridge. As her home remodel contractor in good standing, I was considered to be within this “inner circle” and invited for such an “inspection”. A side note: earlier this year my client’s husband’s doctor (cardiologist) found out about this “in” and begged her to let him go. He said that his son was a photographer and that he would love to get some shots from the top for him. She agreed as long as he followed protocol, as the GGB authority is sensitive to the bridge being a terrorist target. He was told not to shoot pictures within the column of the tower or post pictures on a public website. He ignored both rules and eventually someone traced the photos posted on his website back to my client. There was some consternation from the incident so I was allowed to bring a camera but also warned to be prudent with my picture taking.

Getting to the top is not an everyday affair for the general public, nor even for the passionate bridge fan. I felt honored to have been invited but have no idea how anyone else might get up there without that kind of connection. It was a number of weeks in the planning, yet the likelihood of my getting up that Thursday in November ’06 was sketchy at best. Construction was going on in one of the towers so it was closed, the other tower (north) just opened up from repairs the day before, yet our first winter rain was coming up from the Pacific, making the bureaucrats nervous about bringing guests up. The weather held that crisp morning, yet is was 11:30 am by the time we were allowed to go. My escort and I quickly motored in a rickety 3 wheeled Cushman, from the south parking lot across the sidewalk to the north tower, just as the workers had begun to move off the bridge for lunch (there are 48 painters, one of them a woman, and 23 labor unions associated with the daily workings of the bridge).

As we motored along on the sidewalk near the railing, we had to lean out the windows to ask pedestrians to move out of the way because the horn on the Cushman was broken. At the base of the north tower at sidewalk level, behind a locked submarine style door, there is 2 man elevator inside the hollow leg of the column. We both squeezed into this narrow cage and with only a bare bulb dangling from the ceiling to light the way, we moved very slowly up the 450 ft. shaft. We could hear the random banging of cars driving over the grates on the road deck below echoing through the dark. It was very
eerie! After 5 minutes, it stopped and we stepped into a dark room with a low ceiling and felt our way to a steel ladder that we climbed to room above with a low ceiling and a ladder. Climbing to its top, we popped out of a ceiling hatch and into the bright sunlight. We stepped on to the surface of the highest lintel – we were on top!

There was only a wisp of a warm breeze and we could see at least 30 miles in any direction. It was truly glorious and humbling to be up there! I fumbled with my new digital camera, yet managed to get some pictures, knowing that this opportunity couldn’t be wasted. Around the landing area where we stood there is a thin metal railing with steps at either end that lead to the column caps where the massive cables nest. I was allowed to climb under the big cable (at least 3 ft. in diameter) to gain access to the outside of the tower. It meant that I had to get down on hands and knees and crawl on the grating to reach the other side (I was reminded again of how much I hated heights). With some trepidation, shallow breathing and gritted teeth, I stood up on that open grate, on the other side, and was stunned by an unobstructed view of the entire San Francisco Bay Area, with only a handrail in front of me, and 750 ft down to the water below. A few minutes later, I climbed to the west side of the tower and under its cable to have another unbelievable view of the SF Sunset District, the Farallone Islands and the Marin Headlands.

I shot every angle I could think of with one hand gripping the cast iron column cap, my feeble attempt at resisting a sudden gust of wind. It was surprisingly quiet and peaceful, with no traffic noise or vibration to remind me of the bridge’s purpose. I had a sudden thought, would my cell phone work up here? After a few moments of fumbling with my gear, I saw that it had 3 bars. Who should I call? Why mom, of course!

“I’m on top of the North tower of the Golden Gate Bridge!” I crowed into the phone when she answered.

It took her a few moments for it to sink in and then she wondered aloud, “how can there be a ladder that tall!”

My escort could see in the distance that the workman were on their way back from lunch so she signaled to me that it was time to leave. Once down on the sidewalk, I had to resist grabbing tourists by the lapels to tell them that I was just at the top of the bridge! But I knew I could share this with others as long as the pictures turned out. So, after a year of various attempts to send them out to the swing group, I am trying it again.

I have crossed over the bridge as a regular driver a number of times since. I feel differently whenever I do. It is an amazingly bold feat of engineering and simple aesthetic design that continues to capture my attention. I have taken other pictures from various angles but the most powerful sensation still comes from being on top.

Enjoy!

Best regards, Dan